


Turn Back Time

by neeeeealll



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Babies, Children, F/M, Friendship, Help, Skye is good with children, Ward panics, looking after the team, phil is a cutie, so is Ward, the kids love skye & ward
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-04-18
Updated: 2015-07-03
Packaged: 2018-01-19 20:49:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 41
Words: 67,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1483384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neeeeealll/pseuds/neeeeealll
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Skye comes back to the bus to find that Fitzsimmons, Coulson and May aren't themselves. Can Skye and Ward look after them while trying to return them to normal? Whole team fic.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Skye wander back onto the bus after a weekend away. They had landed in some random place but it happened to have a spa so she was happy. She had tried to convince Simmons and May to join her, but both were busy. Simmons had some sort of conference she couldn’t miss with Fitz and May need to oversee repairs to the plane. She didn’t even bother asking Ward or Coulson if they wanted to join her. Coulson had paper work to fill out and the spa wasn’t really Ward’s thing. Ward had dropped her off on his way to whatever he was doing that weekend. Today she had simply got a cab back as she had finished early and didn’t feel like hanging around the spa. 

The bus was quiet, more so than Skye was expecting. Normally even if people were busy there was still noise, machines clanking and humming. Today it was completely silent. The lab was empty which was unusual but she guessed Fitzsimmons might be upstairs. Heading up that way she was curious to why none of the team had come out to welcome her back. Normally everyone would come and say hello if you had been away for a while. 

Walking past the kitchen she still couldn’t find anybody. The silence was beginning to worry Skye. It was never like this. She was on her guard when she walked into the living room, even so she still froze in shock at what she found. Shaking her head to clear it she reached for her phone and speed dialled the first number.

“Ward. Get back here now!”

******************************************************  
Ward had hurried back to the bus after getting Skye’s call. His head was filled with scenarios of what had happened. The team had stayed on the bus so nothing should have happened but Skye’s voice sounded worried. 

Pulling up beside the bus and hurried inside. As he quickly moved upstairs he noted that there were no signs of a struggle. Reaching the living room he found Skye and what appeared to be a bunch of children. 

“A bunch of children got on the bus?”

“Look closer at them Ward. They aren’t just any children.”

As he did what she said he grasped what she was talking about. He recognised these children, he knew them as adults. Fitzsimmons were now children of about five and were currently having an argument. May looked about six and was watching the fight with avid interest. But most weirdly of all, Coulson, his boss, was a baby about two. This was weird.

Turning back to Skye he asked, 

“What happened?”

“I don’t know. I came back and found them like this.”

“OK. Just keep an eye on them for a minute, I need to make a call.”

*****************************************************

It turned out his call was to Shield, which had caused the director to come out to see what was happening. Skye normally would have been nervous meeting him, but she had her hands full dealing with her teammates. Apparently although they looked like twins and as adults got along extremely well, child Fitzsimmons didn’t like each other very much. They were continually fighting, with words more than physically. This kept upsetting Coulson who she was trying to rock to sleep. May just sat there at watch what was happening. She was as hard to read as her usual adult self. 

Ward was stood talking with the director, which was fine with Skye. She wanted nothing to do with him. He was scary. Passing Simmons to Ward she balanced both Fitz and Coulson on her hips, trying to sooth both. Ward looked panicked for a second before beginning to imitate her. It settled Simmons quickly and allowed Skye to join the conversation. 

“The video has been wiped so there is no way to know what has happened.” She spoke.

“The scientists don’t know what has happened either. It is going to take further investigation. Unfortunately that means you have to stay and look after the children. We can’t let them loose in the rest of Shield as it will cause panic. That’s why I’m enacting protocol delta 249.” Ordered Fury.

“Of course Shield has a protocol for this. It has a protocol for everything.” Skye muttered.

Ward shot her a warning look before asking,

“What does that entail sir?”

“You will be set up in a house where you can look after them. Other members will check in with you from time to time. Oh and you will have to pretend they are your kids and you are a couple. Only outside the house of course.” 

All Skye could do was blink. She had to pretend to be a couple with Ward? Oh this was going to end badly.

*************************************************  
The house they had been given was nice, very simple apart from the fact it only had three bedrooms. It was decided that Coulson, Skye was going to have to start calling him Phil, should sleep in a cot with the adults. May and Jemma were going to share a room, with Fitz having the other room. Ward was going to sleep in the living room as Fitz’s room wasn’t big enough for two but Skye had put her foot down. There was no way he was leaving her to look after the baby. He was sleeping in here with her. They were both adults.

“Skye I have no idea how to look after kids, never mind a baby.”

She could hear the panic in his voice and felt for him. He had never had a normal childhood.

“Don’t worry we’ll do it together. I’m not an expert you know. All we have to do is bathe them, fed them and stop them killing each other when they are bored.”

He didn’t look convinced. To be honest neither was she. Normally she would leave Leo and Jemma together but now if left alone for two minutes they were fighting. Her boss was a baby. May she couldn’t read. They really needed to wash them and put them to bed.  
Oh god! She has going to see her teammates naked! She was never going to be able to look at them again!

“Come on tonight we’ll do it together.” She grabbed Phil and headed to the bathroom, leaving Ward to follow behind her. 

***************************************************

Well this was a disaster. Water was all over the bathroom. Ward was covered in more bubbles than had ever ended up in the bath. He looked slightly stunned by it all. It was very cute. He was currently putting Phil into his PJs while trying not to wake him up. He had fallen asleep while in the bath. 

Leo was currently playing with some of the toys Shield had brought along with the clothes. May was playing with him, liking the superhero toys. Her favourite appeared to be Thor. Which left Skye having to deal with Jemma. She didn’t want to wear the PJs Skye was holding but they had no other ones. They only had a small collection of clothes, as Shield didn’t deal with children very often. The first task tomorrow was to go buy more, something Skye wasn’t looking forward to. 

“I know Sweetie but I don’t have any with puppies on. I only have these rabbit ones. Can you just wear these today until I can get you some new ones?” Skye pleaded. She wanted to get them all to bed. She needed time to process what had happened and how they were going to cope. 

Eventually Jemma gave in but only if she could pick her new clothes tomorrow. Handing Leo to Ward she gathered Jemma and May and led them to their room. Hopefully they would go to sleep quickly!

*************************************************

Ward had got both Phil and Leo to sleep relatively quickly which surprised him. He had a strange feeling holding the baby. Like he had missed out on something. Shaking his head he continued moving around the kitchen, preparing a small meal for him and Skye. They hadn’t had time to eat anything earlier and he had a feeling they were going to need all the energy they could get to look after the kids.

Spying a bottle of wine on the counter he headed over to it. That would also help. Seeing the note attached to it he read it.

Thought you might need this. Help will be along soon. Fury.

Fury had left them wine?  
He wasn’t going to complain. He opened the bottle and began searching for glasses. He had a feeling Skye was going to need a drink. She had a much tougher time getting the girls to sleep; she was still up there with them. 

He had to say he was glad Skye was with him. He didn’t think he could cope without her. He had no idea how to deal with kids, but she just took it all in her stride. He had to admit he was curious how she would have looked as child. Adorable he bet, she would have him wrapped around her little finger. She already did really. 

“Finally.” She said coming down the stairs.

“Here have some food. Also I thought you might like this as well. Fury left it for us.” He handed her a huge glass of wine before picking up his. 

“Oh thank god. I think this may kill me, Grant.”

She only used his first name when she was worried. Moving towards her he pulled her into a hug.

“Hey like you said we’ll do this together. You are doing fantastically. Without you I’d be a mess.”

She nodded against his shoulder before moving to sit down at the breakfast bar. As they began to eat Ward couldn’t help but think that so far they had had it easy. Tomorrow would be the real test. He hoped Fury’s help would come soon, he had a feeling they would need it. 

******************************************


	2. Chapter 2

Skye woke to crying coming from all directions. Sitting up she saw that Ward had also woken up and was looking around for the source of the noise. Phil was sitting in his cradle at the bottom of their bed crying, with May stood staring into the cot beside him. Noises down the hall way indicated that the other two were also awake. 

“I’ll get the older lot dressed. You take Phil and get him dressed, then start breakfast.” Skye sighed. 

Ward nodded his agreement before getting out of bed and heading over to the cot. Skye took a moment to appreciate the sight of her SO. He was only wearing boxers and a t-shirt. She knew she should be moving, the noise from the corridor was getting louder, but she couldn’t help watch, if just for a moment. A sudden squeal reminded her of what she should be doing. 

“Come on Mel, let’s get dressed.” 

She grabbed the young girls hand and led her from the room. Now to find out what the other two were up to.

**********************************************

Half an hour later everyone was dressed and downstairs. Breakfast was a mucky affair with Skye watching the three older ones while Ward tried to feed Phil and stop him crying. Although initially uncomfortable holding the baby he was now rocking him like a pro, all while trying to feed himself breakfast. Unfortunately even though he had been fed Phil wasn’t happy. Ward had sacrificed his phone to get a little peace. Phil was currently drooling all over it, laughing as he found that he could make it play tunes.

“So what is the plan for after breakfast?” Ward questioned.

“Well everyone needs more clothes and we could do with more food and toys for the kids so I guess it’s shopping.” Skye replied while wiping cereal from Leo’s face. 

“OK. Everyone go and clean your teeth. I’ll be checking that you have done it.”

She watched as Mel took Jemma’s hand and they raced upstairs, it appeared she had decided that Jemma needed her protection. Leo followed up after them still trying to beat them up the stairs. It was still weird to Skye that Leo and Jemma didn’t like each other but she would just have to get used to it. Calling May Mel was another example of something she was going to have to get her head around. 

“Before you go I have something for you.” Spoke Ward, reaching into his pocket. With Phil busy playing he turned his full attention on her.

“I’m sorry you are going to have to wear them all the time until we get everything solved here. I got to pick them though so I hope you like them. I tried to pick something that you would like.” He continued nervously. 

Whatever he had he was really concerned about whether she would like them, which was kind of sweet. From his pocket he pulled out a small box that he handed to her. Opening it careful she saw two rings sitting in the box. The first was a plain platinum ring, slender and simple, that was clearly a wedding ring. Next to it was another platinum ring, but this one also contained diamonds. In the centre was a square cut diamond, with was then surrounded by smaller diamonds in another square shape. Diamonds also were mounted halfway down the band. It was beautiful. They both were.

“If you don’t like it you can always change it.” Ward continued nervously when she didn’t say anything.

“Shhhh. I love them. They are beautiful thank you.” She replied, leaning and placing a soft kiss on his cheek. “Can I see yours?”

He held out his hand, showing a simple platinum band like the one in the box, only this one was slightly thicker. It suited him. 

“May I?” He asked reaching for the box in front of her. 

Nodding, she watched as he removed both rings from the box before reaching for her hand. It didn’t escape her notice that his hand was trembling slightly as he did this. Gently he slide both rings onto her fingers, before raising her hand to his lips, pressing a gently kiss to it. 

“Arghhhhhhhhh” Came the cry from upstairs before Skye could think of anything to reply. 

Smiling slightly Ward gently lowered her hand back to the table and stood up.

“I’ll go and find out what happened. It’s my turn to deal with them, you sorted them this morning.”

With that he left the room leaving Skye to gaze at her hand as if she had never seen it before. The rings fit her perfectly and looked like they were meant to sit there. Skye had a feeling that looking after the children might not be her biggest problem with this mission.

*********************************************************

It had been decided that as it was their first outing with the children, they would keep it simple by only going to one shop. Once they had got used to the children and their personalities again then maybe they would go to more shops. They had all piled into the SUV Shield had provided and headed for the nearest store.

Before leaving the house Skye and Ward had agreed that they would both be responsible for two children. He had been left in charge of Phil and Leo, while Skye took care of Mel and Jemma. The girls had gone off to get clothes and toys for all of them, leaving the boys to take care of food. He was worried about the gleam in Skye’s eyes when she had announced this. He had a feeling he was going to get clothes in lots of colours that he would never wear again. But if it made her happy why should he complain. 

He had quickly loaded Phil into the baby seat of the trolley and took a firm hold of Leo’s hand. Leo had been gazing around in awe at the store leaving Ward wondering if he had ever been in anywhere as big as this before. He seemed to have a desire to wander off to look at everything so Ward deemed it a good idea to keep a hold of him. Leo could wander off as an adult, who knows how bad he would be as a child. 

Wandering up and down he allowed Leo to pick more food than he normally would. It was adorable to watch how excited he was looking at all the different food. It had occurred to him that Leo wouldn’t have seen much of this food before; food in the USA was totally different to Scotland. He had to remember that this Leo now had different experiences to the adult Leo that he knew. 

Turning to pick some cereal he let go of Leo’s hand. Turning back to ask if there was any other other cereal he wanted Ward was greeted him an empty isle. Leo was nowhere in sight, with only Phil sat giggling in the trolley. Sighing, Ward quickly dropped the cereal in the trolley before turning to go and track down Leo. He couldn’t tell Skye that he had lost one of their children!

***************************************************

Skye was having problems of her own. Clothing had quickly been picked for everyone; with plenty of clothes selected so they should all have enough to wear. Jemma was happy, as she had got the PJs she wanted and Mel had chosen another superhero toy. She had simply turned away for one second to pick up a game system that she thought the kids and Ward would like. Turning back she found that both girls had gone.

“Mel? Jemma?” She called, looking around frantically. She couldn’t believe she had lost them. They hadn’t even been with her a day and she had lost them. Not just one, but two of them. She quickly began looking up and down with no sign of them anywhere. Just as she got to the edge of the clothing area she bumped into Ward. He looked as flustered as she felt and clearly only had Phil with him. At least she wasn’t the only one to loose the kids. He had one held down and had still lost one. That made her feel a little better. Maybe he wasn’t good at everything.

“Lost them?” He spoke when seeing her. Nodding her head she began looking up and down with him trying to locate them. 

“Can I help you?” Inquired a friendly looking member of staff who had noticed their panic.

“We’ve lost three of our children.” Skye spoke, still scanning the area. She didn’t know what else to call them without blowing any cover they have. So she suddenly had given birth to four kids, apparently she was a very young mum!

“Don’t worry we’ll find them. I’ll put a call out for them.” Reassure the staff member. 

A sudden bang had Skye looking at Ward. He clearly had had the same thought. They both quickly headed towards the sounds of the commotion. Skidding to a stop they both took in the sight of the three missing kids. Leo was currently eating his way through a chocolate bunny that was almost as big as he was. He was going to go into sugar shock later, Skye noted absently. May had found a martial art simulator, which she was currently kicking the life out of. Skye saw that she had already managed to pass the high score by quite a bit. Jemma was sat on the floor by the simulator holding a small chemistry set. That would be the cause of the bang. 

Skye quickly removed the chemistry set from Jemma before she could cause more damage. Picking her up she placed her in the trolley, which seemed to be the safest place to prevent them running away. She saw Ward had the same idea as he carried Leo and May, with one under each arm. After he had deposited them both in the trolley he turned to Skye,

“I believe it is time for us to leave.”

“Definitely. Please tell me you got more wine?”

“It’s the final thing I need to get. Don’t worry I’m getting plenty.”

Skye smiled at the response and they quickly left the area, pretending they had no idea what had happened. Removing the hankie from Ward’s pocket she removed the remains of the bunny from Leo’s hands and wiped away the remaining evidence of their escape from his face as they walked towards the checkout. How could a simple shopping trip have gone so badly?

*********************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So thank you for all your reviews and ideas. I will hopefully add some more in future chapters. The next one will see Skye and Ward getting some of the help that Fury promised. ☺


	3. Chapter 3

Ward couldn’t believe how hyper one child could become. Yesterday had been like a horror story. Having eaten his weight in chocolate Fitz had ran around like a lunatic for the rest of the day, upsetting the other kids before crashing at 8 o’clock. The other two had taken ages to settle so it had meant very little sleep for him or Skye. He had left her sleeping peacefully in the bed with Phil still sleeping. Just because he was awake early, it didn’t mean she should be. He had moved downstairs and begun to tidy up and prepare for the kids waking. Setting up the coffee machine he moved towards the living room where toys were covering practically every surface. Knowing that he would regret it later if he didn’t tidy up now, he began to move the toys into the boxes stacked in the living room. 

Once the room was tidied he looked around trying to find any other jobs that needed doing before the kids got up. His eyes fell on the Wii that Skye had bought for the kids. While it was quiet it seemed like a good time to do it. That was how Skye found him. He had plugged everything in and was now sat playing on the machine. 

“I was just setting it up.” He began to explain as she stood smiling at him.

“I got it for all of us. Besides I thought you might like to play on it as well. It’s something else I can kick your ass at.” She grinned at him.

“Thank you for letting me sleep in.”

“No problem. I thought you deserved it. The coffee should be ready by now. Kids still asleep?”

She nodded as she headed for the kitchen. He paused the game with some regret, before heading into the kitchen where she had poured a cup of coffee for him. He was beginning to look forward to these times, when it was just him and Skye. It was a time of quiet and peace before the children burst into it like a rocket. They hadn’t been taking care of them that long and Ward was ready for them to return to their adult selves. He had never thought about looking after children before and he had just now realised how much work it was. He was glad Skye knew what she was doing.

A quiet knock at the door had him leaving the kitchen. It was only 8 in the morning, who would be knocking at this time?

*******************************************************  
Skye had woken up, finding herself alone in the bed. Glancing at the clock she saw it was just before 8. Leaving Phil sleeping peacefully she had snuck downstairs to find Ward while it was still quiet. 

She couldn’t help but smile as she remembered how she had found him. She knew he would love the games. She wanted him to be able to have fun, plus it was something that all the kids can do together. The knock at the door had her frowning. They weren’t expecting anybody. She wouldn’t be sitting here in PJs if they were. She could hear Ward talking to who ever was at the door. Hearing the door shut she looked up to find Ward leading in a man who looked vaguely familiar.

“Skye this is Dr Bruce Banner. He is part of Fury’s help and is here to try and find out what is happening with the rest of the team. Bruce, this is Skye.”

Bruce Banner? This was the Hulk? He seemed so nice and normal. Also Ward was talking about him as if he knew him. When did he meet the Hulk? Skye smiled at the man and shook his hand. Before she could say anything a sudden cry came from the child radio on the counter. Apparently Phil had woken up, which meant that the others would be up soon. Waving for Ward to sit down Skye headed upstairs to pick up the baby. It gave her a chance to escape and put on some clothes. She wasn’t bothered by Ward seeing her in her tank top and shorts but was less comfortable with others seeing her in it. 

**********************************************************

Having got all the kids up and dressed Skye came down to find out why Bruce had been sent to them. As the kids were eating she was informed that Bruce was to help out with the kids for a while, enabling Skye and Ward to have an occasional break from the kids. He was also helping to find out what actually happened to the team. This would start with some blood tests, but first they needed to get them to sit still. 

While Bruce went to go get his equipment Skye took the opportunity to ask Ward something that had been on her mind since the arrival of the help. 

“Have you met him before? Bruce, I mean.”

“Yeah. Coulson put me in touch with him after the incident with the Asgardian staff. Bruce has experience with anger management. Coulson thought it might help for me to talk to someone who knew what I was going through.”

Skye reached out and squeezed his hand. She knew it had been tough on him after the incident but she had never realised how bad it had been for him. She wished she had been able to help more. 

It had been decided the easiest way to take the samples of blood was to let them watch a movie before taking them one at a time, with Skye sitting with them while the sample was taken. 

Surprisingly it had all gone well and was done with a minimum amount of crying. Ward had now been dragged into playing on the Wii with them all. They had teamed up with the boys on one team and the girls on the other. Skye watched with amusement. The girls were currently beating the boys at Mario Party. There were lots of accusations of cheating from both teams, but both appeared to be having a ball. It was adorable to watch. She loved her team dearly but seeing them as kids had made her love them even more. Ward was clearly enjoying the game. Watching him be carefree was a fantastic sight. She wished she had her phone so she could record it for future reference. He was now bouncing Phil while playing the game, making the little boy gurgle in delight. 

“He’s very good with the kids isn’t he?” Bruce noted from his seat beside her. 

“He doesn’t think he is but yeah.”

“It’s nice to actually see him interact with the team. He was afraid that he had ruined the relationships for ever after his outbursts.”

“What? We knew he wasn’t himself.”

“I know. So does he. But he has never had any relationships that are like this. He is afraid to lose them. He was especially concerned about what he yelled at you. He felt like he had broken the relationship between you.”

“I knew he wasn’t himself. I never blamed him.”

“I know that. So does he, but he knew he had hurt you before with something. He didn’t want to hurt you again.”

“It did a bit but I don’t hold it against him.”

The giggling had increased from the children causing her to glance over at them. The game had been abandoned with all of the children pilling on top of Ward. Everyone was laughing and a tickle game had begun. Skye grinned as she watched Bruce pull out of his phone and take photos of the group.

“This definitely needs documenting.” Bruce smirked.

**************************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the slow update on this. I haven’t been very well so unfortunately haven’t been able to write. Thank you to Amaya who has read through this. Also thank you to everyone had left reviews. Any mistakes left are mine, sorry. Next time another person will turn up to help and the kids will get to play outside.


	4. Chapter 4

Having overseen the pile-on contest Skye decided it was time for an activity that didn’t require someone getting squished. As it was raining it wasn’t possible for the kids to go and play outside so it had to be an indoor activity. Gathering two plastic sheets she placed one under the table and one on top. Having ensured that as much of the area was covered as was possible she then dug out some paint and pictures that she had bought yesterday. It was something they could do as a group and would keep them occupied for a little while. Phil was still a bit young to be painting but Bruce agreed to hold him while he covered himself and the surrounding area in paint. May was happily painting a bunch of flowers with great care, while Simmons had found a picture of the TARDIS to paint. Fitz had chosen an image with lots of machines that he was currently painting in every colour possible. Ward simply looked relieved to have escaped having to help with the painting. Five minutes had passed and already there was more paint on the table than on any of the pictures. Skye simply rolled her eyes at the sight, glad she had taken precautions. 

She followed Ward into the kitchen where he was beginning to prepare for the dinner. They were going to have spaghetti bolognese, which would cause a mess in itself. Although she had little experience in cooking she knew she could help by chopping up some of the ingredients for him. Plus if she was here then she was less likely to see the mess occurring in the other room. The recipe was relatively simple and Skye had the easy task of chopping mushrooms and opening a bottle of wine. Some was to go in the sauce but the rest was for the adults as a reward for not killing the children or allowing them to kill one another. 

Glancing back into the dinning room, she could clearly see Fitz and Simmons having another fight. Jemma was using the colour that Leo wanted so he had taken the blue away from her. This had quickly escalated into them painting each other with different colours, ignoring their paintings. Bruce was too busy trying to stop Phil painting May’s hair to stop the other two. She was just about to step into the room to sort it out when a pair of arms encircled her waist. By preventing her moving Ward had pulled her against his chest. Tilting his head he whispered in her ear:

“Just leave them. They’re happy. We are going to have to bath them later. We might as well do them all at the same time.”

Skye nodded in agreement. He was still gently holding her waist and it was starting to become distracting. She was only wearing a thin shirt so could feel the heat coming of his body from behind her. 

Rap tap.

The noise on the kitchen window caused them both to break apart.

“I’ll go see what that was.” She muttered awkwardly. 

Moving to the kitchen door she was startled by the person standing there. Looking around the back garden she quickly saw how he had managed to get over the fence and into the back garden.

“You couldn’t use the front door like a normal person.” She commented as she moved back to allow him into the house.

“Of course not. That would be boring. It’s nice to meet you Skye. You’re much prettier than I expected.”

“Thanks I think. Oh, this is Grant Ward.”

“Ah yes I’ve heard a lot about you Agent Ward.” 

“Ok. Nice to meet you. Skye, do you want to tell me how you know Tony Stark?” Asked Ward looking puzzled

“I may have hacked into Stark Industries and changed some settings on JARVIS. Tony tracked it back to me and we started talking.”

Ward just looked at her before rolling his eyes. 

“Oh yeah and she told me all sorts of interesting information. Especially about you, Robot.” Stark commented.

Skye felt herself blush slightly at the tone in Tony’s voice. She may have talked about her SO more than she had initially thought. Apparently Tony had picked up on that.

“Anyway, back to serious matters. I’m here because I’ve finally managed to retrieve some of the wiped video, which I thought you might like to see. How about you extract the rage machine and we can all talk together?”

Ward moved into the dinning room and signalled for Bruce to join them. They left Leo and Jemma still having a paint fight and May finishing her picture. Bruce left Phil in his highchair, asking May to keep an eye on him. 

Ignoring greetings to Bruce, Tony quickly flipped open the laptop he had carried with him. Pulling up the footage from the Bus it was quickly apparent that not all of it was there. However, it was possible for them to find out what happened to the team. Everything was normal until a gas could be seen entering the aircraft. It reached May first causing her to pass out. Fitzsimmons were hit next, before it reached Coulson. After that the video went blank.

“I couldn’t retrieve anymore video. But I would guess that the gas has caused the change in your team.” Explained Tony. “May got the biggest dose so reduced in age the most, though because she was older she now appears as the oldest child. Fitzsimmons got the same dose, which was a smaller amount than May so didn’t reduce in age as much.”

“What about Coulson then?” Skye interjected, seeing the flaw in the explanation.

“I’m just guessing but I think it could be that whatever was used to de-age them reacted badly with the alien substance in his blood. That caused him to become much younger than the others.”

“OK. So where do we go from here?”

“Well as Bruce has the blood samples we can see if there is anything left in their blood. Otherwise it’s just more research.”

Skye wished there was more they could do. She knew her teammates weren’t in pain but it was still hard to see them like this. She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Ward looking at her concerned. She managed a small smile before turning back to Tony.

“OK. I’ll take Bruce and we’ll get started running the blood. Besides it’s probably about time to tidy up those kids and I don’t deal with messy kids.”

With a cheeky grin he quickly left the house, dragging Bruce along with him. 

“So time to wash the little monsters then?” Skye grinned at Ward.

******************************************************

It took nearly an hour to get them clean. Skye had taken Jemma and May into her room to use the shower while Ward took the boys. Jemma was covered head to toe in paint so had to be carried from the room to stop her spreading paint everywhere. May fortunately only had paint in her hair from Phil grabbing her so was easier to sort. While May was in the shower, Skye stripped Jemma of her clothes. It was debatable whether it was worth washing them or whether they should just be thrown away. Once May had finished Skye lifted Jemma into the shower and made sure it was on the young girl fully. The paint had soaked through her clothes and onto her skin. In the end Skye simply got in the shower with her to ensure all the paint was cleared away. 

Having got both girls clean and dried Skye was exhausted. Sending them downstairs to wait for tea, she quickly considered herself. She was soaking wet, having got in the shower with Jemma without removing her clothes. That was the first thing she had to do. Then she would check on the boys. 

Dressing quickly, as she knew she couldn’t leave the girls alone for too long, she was greeted by Ward entering the room. 

“You got wet as well then?” He asked.

“Yep. I had to get in the shower with Jemma. How about you?”

“Phil decided he wanted to splash everyone and Leo joined in. Unfortunately as I was making sure Phil was alright they ganged up on me and covered me in water.”

Skye laughed at the image that presented. She could just imagine the look on his face when that happened. They had done a good job of soaking him; his white t-shirt was going see-through, sticking to his chest. Shaking her head, Skye quickly headed to the door to give him time to change out of his wet clothes. He was distracting enough normally, but when his t-shirt was like that he managed to make her mind completely wander. She couldn’t afford for that to happen, not with four mischief-makers left to their own devices downstairs.

************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you once again to Amaya for reading this. Also thank you for all your reviews and comments. I am feeling slightly better now ☺ Next time we will see a discussion on what the kids should call Skye and Ward.


	5. Chapter 5

Ward dodged a flying spoon as once again Phil threw it at his head. He was sat in his high-chair eating cereal. Or rather not eating cereal and just throwing his spoon at Ward. It appeared to be part of a game and Ward couldn’t help but smile as it was making the little boy smile and giggle. It wasn’t hurting him to play along with him and it was making him happy. He never thought he could make his boss smile simply by dodging a flying spoon. But then again he never expected him to be turned into a baby. He still found it very strange. 

“No more Phil.” He instructed the giggling boy as he once again handed the spoon back to him.   
This time he wasn’t going to turn his back on him. He had been trying to prepare breakfast for everyone else while Skye got them dressed but that wasn’t going well. He would just have to wait till everyone was downstairs. By the noise that was being made it wouldn’t be long before they were down here. As he watched he saw Phil lean to one side and drop the spoon on the floor. Grinning he pointed at the spoon while looking at Ward.

“Daddy!” Exclaimed Phil.

‘Wait what? Daddy? DADDY?

Did he just call me daddy? I’m not his daddy. I can’t have my boss calling me daddy. I could never be a daddy. Help.’

While he was having a small breakdown the rest of the group had come downstairs. They had found him staring at Phil, while Phil was still giggling at pointing at the spoon. Skye bent down and picked up the spoon for Phil and got the others sat down. Looking at Ward she saw he had completely frozen. When he didn’t reply to her she gave the kids their breakfast before turning back to him. 

“Grant?” 

When he still didn’t reply she gently touched his face. Focusing in on her she could see the wild panic in his eyes. 

“He called me Daddy.” He muttered. 

That explained the look of shock. It was strange enough seeing the team members as children, but to have them call you daddy she could understand the shock. 

“Well you are. You’re mummy, he’s daddy,” came the voice of Jemma from where she sat eating cereal. Glancing over at them she saw both Leo and Mel nodding in agreement. 

“Do you not want us to call you that?” Questioned Leo, his bottom lips trembling as he looked at her.

“No if you want to call us that sweetie then it is fine. It just took us by surprise that’s all,” reassured Skye.

“We do,” said May.

“Ok then. Let’s just keep eating breakfast then.”

She grabbed Ward’s hand and led him to sit down. She could tell he was still in shock, but she would deal with it once the children had finished. Beside, he probably needed to work his way through his thoughts on his own. 

Once the kids had finished their breakfast she sent them off to play so she could talk to Ward without them overhearing. Removing Phil from his high chair she sat him on her knee as she began to clean his face. Phil was quite happy playing with Skye’s bracelets, so it was the perfect time to talk to him. Touching his hand she waited for him to speak.

“It just took me by surprise. Why would they want to call me dad?”

“Because you’re a good person and you’re looking after them.”

“What if I mess it up? What if I mess them up?”

“How could you? You won’t hurt them, you are trying to stop them being hurt. You care about them, don’t you?”

“Of course I do.”

“Then that is all that matters. Neither of us are experts at this. All we can do is look after them and keep them happy.”

He looked at her for a long moment before leaning in and placing a kiss on her cheek. 

“Thank you.” 

“Anytime Grant. I’m scared as well, but if we stick together we will get through this.”

“Daddy!” Squealed Phil, breaking the moment.

“I think we have a favourite,” grinned Skye.

Laughing, Ward reached for Phil and gently began tossing him in the air.

“Of course we do. I’m the one that keeps feeding this monster.”

Skye watched as he continued playing with the little boy, making him chortle in delight. She knew he was only worried because of his childhood. But really he had nothing to worry about. He was good with the kids. It was sweet to watch.

**********************************************************  
They had decided to take them all to the park. It got the kids out of the house for a bit and let them run off some of the energy they had. While they were doing that the adults could have a break, while still keeping an eye on them. They sat with Phil on the swings while the others ran off to play. Mel and Jemma went to play on the slide and climbing frame while Fitz went to play in the sandpit. 

He was carefully crafting an intricate castle in the sand when a boot suddenly broke it. Looking up at an older boy Fitz objected. 

“Hey. I made that.”

“So? Where are all your friends loser?”

“Why does it matter?”

“I bet you don’t have any friends. I mean who would want to be friends with you? You’re a loser with no friends.”

“I have friends.”

“Where are they then?”

“Behind you,” came a familiar voice to Fitz.

“Mel!”

“Leave him alone.”

“Or what?”

Mel didn’t bother replying; instead she hit the bully straight in the chest sending him falling into the sand. The bully quickly stood up again and charged at her. She simply stepped to one side grabbing his arm when he got near her and flipped him onto the ground. Leaving the bully spitting out sand she motioned to Leo. 

“Come and play with us.”

“I didn’t think you liked me.”

“We like you even though you’re a boy, Leo,” answered Jemma. “Now come and play.”

Skye glanced at Ward as she watched the trio playing on the slide. 

“You saw that right?”

“You mean where May flipped the other kid. Yeah, I did.”

“Glad it wasn’t just me. Should we do something about it?”

“What can we do? Anyway, the kid deserved it. He tried to attack her.”

“You sound a bit proud there Ward.”

“Just a little bit. At least we don’t have to worry about them getting bullied.”

“True. Also they are all friends now.”

“Yeah. Why do I get the feeling that is going to be a bad thing for us?”

“Because they will probably gang up on us and cause mischief. You thought before was hard.”  
**********************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So they are all friends now. Do you think things are going to get more difficult for Skye and Ward? Next time night time problems.


	6. Chapter 6

Screaming filled the air again. Apparently it was going to be the night for it. Ward watched as Skye headed upstairs to find out what the problem was. They had agreed to take it in turns whenever one of the children needed them and as he had got up last time it was her turn. Both of them had been up and down tonight as all of the kids had found it difficult to settle. This time it sounded like Phil as the crying had echoed down the stairs and from the baby monitor.

They had been trying to watch TV just to relax and have some child-free time. It hadn’t really happened and he had no idea what was actually happening in what ever they were watching. He thought it might be Hawaii 5-0 but wasn’t sure as Skye picked it. If he had seen more he probably would have liked it. But he had seen more of the adverts than he had of the programme. It seemed like every time the programme had restarted one of the children would start crying. By the time he had got them settled again and got back downstairs the adverts would be one. Then the cycle would begin again. 

He wasn’t that bothered about watching the programme; it would have been nice to understand what was going on. He just liked spending time with Skye. Even in this crazy situation she remained bubbly and could make him laugh. He had always enjoyed spending time with her, on the bus he could frequently be persuaded by her to play games such as battleship. With everything going on it was nice to have some normalcy, unfortunately it kept being shattered by the children. He couldn’t really complain but he missed the peace and quite. 

It was terrifying having to look after the children. He was constantly scared of doing something wrong or letting them hurt themselves. On a mission he knew what he needed to do, and what dangers to look out for to keep the team safe. But with them as children he was totally out of his depth. Skye said he was doing well but he didn’t want to let the team down. Eventually they would be turned back to adults and he didn’t want them to have complaints about how they were treated if they remembered this time. He had never planned to be a father; his line of work didn’t really lend itself to relationships. Constantly being on the move and having to lie about your work didn’t lead to trusting relationships. After his childhood he had considered never having children but he was surprised by how he had felt after Phil had called him Daddy. After the initial shock had gone he realised he liked it. He never thought of having children before, it was something he was adamant he wasn’t doing. But now looking after the team he could understand why people did it. Yes it was hard but he now understood why it might be worth it. Maybe if he had the opportunity in the future he would choose to have children in the future instead of a total refusal. 

Though looking after the team maybe enough for him. Skye came downstairs carrying a screaming Phil. She looked absolutely shattered. Rocking Phil gently trying to calm him she spoke,

“I can’t get him to settle. I brought him down here so he didn’t wake the others.”

“Do you want me to take him for a bit?”

“Sure. I’m going to warm some milk. It might help him calm down.”

Ward took the crying little boy in his arms and watched as Skye headed into the kitchen. He started to rock the little boy in his arms. His crying slowed slightly but something was clearly upsetting him. 

“Hush. It’s ok, Phil. I’m here. Shush. It’s alright.”

Shifting Phil in his arms so he was supported in just one arm, Ward took the beaker of warm milk from Skye and began feeding it to Phil. He drank some of it before continuing to cry again. Looking at Skye helplessly he had another idea. Moving to the table he grabbed his car keys. Looking at him in confusion Skye asked,

“What are you doing?”

“Taking him out for a drive. It might settle him down.”

“Good idea.”

“You go on up to bed. One of us might as well get some sleep.”

“Ok. Thank you, Grant. If he is still upset when we get back wake me up.”

“Sleep well.”

He watched as Skye made her way upstairs before grabbing his house keys and heading out to the car. Maybe the motion of the car would send Phil to sleep.

*********************************************

Skye woke again when Ward came back in and she could hear that Phil was still crying. It was quieter than before. She was expecting him to come upstairs but he never did. One moment she was thinking about going down to help him then the next thing she knew she was waking up again. It was clearly the middle of the night as everything was pitch black. Breathing beside her ear told her that Ward was now in bed. 

Glancing at the crib she found it was empty. ‘Where was Phil?’ She wondered. Sitting up she looked at Ward. He wouldn’t have come to bed without putting Phil down to sleep. She couldn’t help but smile at the sight in front of her as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. Lying beside her was Ward, fast asleep. He was in the jogging bottoms he had been wearing to bed but without the usual top he wore with them. He was bare chested, lying flat on his back with Phil lying on his chest. It was the cutest thing she had ever seen. She guessed that Phil had been sick on Ward due to the removal of his shirt and the changing of Phil’s clothes. She knew Ward always wore jogging bottoms and top to bed to make her feel more comfortable. 

Now she knew that they were both safe and happily sleeping, she turned back over and snuggled down to go back to sleep.

She wasn’t sure how much later it was when she was woken by a pair of eyes staring at her. Blinking awake she looked at the young girl stood at the side of the bed. 

“Mel. You scared me. What’s wrong?” Skye kept her voice down to avoid waking the sleeping boys beside her. 

“I had a nightmare.”

“Oh Sweetie, come here.” Skye gathered the shaking girl in her arms and lifted her into the bed beside her. Mel cuddled into her arms and settled against her. Skye was just getting ready to go back to sleep once she had felt Mel’s breathing become more regular when the bedroom door opened. Two people wandered into the bedroom and moved to the side of the bed. 

“Mummy, we can’t sleep,” muttered Leo, rubbing his eyes. 

‘Oh well,’ thought Skye. ‘We might as well have everyone in the bed.’

Picking up Mel, she moved closer to Ward before lifting the bedclothes so the other two could get in.

“Come on, get in.”

She felt the bed dip as they both climbed in, cuddling up to Mel. Skye reached over so she could put an arm around them all. She jumped slightly when she heard a voice whisper in her ear,

“Then there were six in the bed.”

“If you add then the little one said roll over I will smack you,” she replied, grinning. 

Jemma clearly overhead Ward’s whisper as she spoke up.

“Daddy cuddle too?”

The only way he could do that was to move closer to Skye and move Phil. She was startled to feel him move beside her. He lifted Phil and placed him beside Mel. Moving closer to Skye he lay beside her before reaching his arm across them to cuddle the kids.

“Just don’t squish your brother.” He warned.

There wasn’t much room in the bed with all of them. Skye was feeling squashed, she couldn’t move forward anywhere and she didn’t want to move closer to Ward in case she made him feel uncomfortable. As if he sensed her thoughts he moved and gently pulled her back so she was resting against him. She was actually cuddling with Ward! He was actually a good cuddler. She relaxed against him as the children slept beside her. 

******************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the last chapter was quite short so I thought I’d write another one. If there is anything you want the kids to do or Skye and Ward let me know. Thank you for all your reviews and comments and kudos.


	7. Chapter 7

Skye was busy trying to fit the baby seat into the car when she heard the person approaching. Turning she saw a lady with blonde hair standing behind her. She recognised her as the neighbour from the house next to theirs. Skye hadn’t had chance to meet her yet so didn’t know her name.

“Hi. I’m Clare. I see you’ve just moved in.”

“Hi. I’m Skye. Yeah, my family have just arrived.” Skye brushed her hands down her jeans before shaking Clare’s hand. Although her and Ward had agreed that they would pretend to be married, they hadn’t agreed anything about names. They had both been calling each other their actual names so they would have to stick with them. Beside, the kids had heard them use their names: using different ones would just confuse them or lead to awkward questions later.

“I just wanted to introduce myself. I would have come over earlier, but I know how hectic it is when you move. Especially with children.”

“Yeah, it has been a little bit mad.” Skye watched as Ward left the house carrying Phil with the rest just in front of him. 

“Oh this is my husband, Grant. Grant, this is Clare, she lives next door.”

“Nice to meet you.” Replied Ward, juggling Phil so he could shake her hand. Leo and Jemma were stood clinging to his legs while Mel went and stood beside Skye. Apparently they were scared of strangers.

“And you. Are these all your kids?”

Skye was aware of Clare looking at the kids trying to work out ages of everyone.

“Yeah we got a start early on. We were childhood sweethearts.” Skye lied, hoping it was believable.

“Aww, that is adorable. Well, if you want them to meet some of the kids in the area, just let me know. My two are a similar age to your eldest. I know it’s hard for them to make friends when they move to a new area.”

“Thanks for that. We wanted to get them settled before we introduced them to someone new.”

“Not a problem. Anyway, I can see you are off somewhere, so I’ll leave you to it.”

Skye turned her attention back to the kids and began the task of strapping them in to the car. Phil was relatively easy, as he was quickly restrained in the car seat. The others were more difficult. Jemma and Leo were fighting again so didn’t want to sit together. Mel didn’t want to wear her seatbelt or sit next to Phil. In the end Skye resorted to threatening not to go out at all to get everyone strapped in. Eventually they were all ready to set off. Ward was once again driving because he didn’t like her driving. That was fine with Skye; it meant she chose the music. When played at a certain level she could ignore the fighting in the back. Thankfully it was a short journey.

The fighting stopped suddenly when the kids saw where they were going.

“Bowling? We’re going bowling?” Squeaked Leo.

“Yes, if you can behave.” Answered Ward, manoeuvring the car into a parking space.

“Yes, dad.” Came the reply from everyone in the back, causing Skye to smile. 

They quickly gathered the kids, with Ward taking Phil and keeping a hold of Jemma’s hand to stop her running off, while Skye kept a hold of Leo and Mel. They got one lane and proceeded to play. Skye and Ward took it in turns to hold Phil while the other bowled. At one point they even set it up so he could bowl the ball and knock down some pins. Whenever Skye wasn’t bowling she had Mel sat on her lap. Leo seemed to take great delight in sitting on Ward whenever he wasn’t bowling, while Jemma sat in the middle of the floor, blocking everybody, but she was happy. The kids quickly became very competitive with each other, all wanting to win. Skye and Ward watched with fondness while planning their moves with care. They had a bet resting on the winner between them. The winner got to have 4 hours to themselves the next day while the other coped with the kids. Ward was currently winning, but Skye wasn’t far behind.

While they were playing they ordered food, deciding to make a complete day of it. Leo and Mel shared a pizza while Jemma shared chips with Phil. Skye and Ward went for a burger, though a lot of it seemed to be eaten by the kids as they decided they liked it better than their own food. Phil and Leo ended up with food all over their clothes not matter how hard the adults tried to keep them clean. The game ended with Jemma being the surprise winner of the kids and Skye the winner of the adults. She took great delight in teasing Ward about it. 

None of them wanted to head back to the house after the game so they stayed in the bowling area but moved to the arcade section. Phil had a great time riding in a car that looked a lot like Lola. Skye took a lot of pictures of him grinning and waving at her on the ride. Mel and Leo were having a dance battle, while Ward was on a driving game with Jemma sat in his lap. She was in charge of the steering while Ward handled the pedals. Skye wasn’t sure who was having more fun. Both were sat giggling as Jemma repeatedly hit every obstacle that she possibly could. 

After another couple of hours they headed back home, this time without the battle to get everyone in the car. Once back, Skye put on the Emperor’s New Groove for them to watch, knowing that they would all enjoy it. Seeing that Ward had never seen it before either, she convinced him to sit and watch the film with the children while she cleaned the house. Glancing back into the living room on her way to the kitchen she saw Ward sat with Jemma and Mel cuddled under each arm and Leo lying across the laps of all of them. Phil was lying on Ward’s feet and they were all staring at the screen engrossed. She knew they would like the film. It was a good ending to a fantastic day.

*******************************************

Ward woke with a start, his breathing rapid. He was covered in sweat. Glancing around he quickly recognised where he was. Skye was lying next to him still fast asleep. It was just a nightmare, even if it had seemed so real. He needed to check on everybody. To ensure himself that everything was all right. Creeping out of the bed so not to wake Skye, he moved over to the cot where Phil was sleeping peacefully. He was lying on his back with one hand clutching his blanket. 

Satisfied that he was all right, he moved into Leo’s room. He was still asleep with one hand falling out of the bed clinging to a model he had built on the floor. Ward would guess he had been adding to it before he went to sleep. He then moved on to the girls’ room. Both were also sleeping happily although Jemma was no longer in her own bed but in Mel’s. They were curled together with Mel holding the younger girl close to her. Ward stood for a moment enjoying the peace that watching the girls gave him.

Once he had calmed down he snuck back into the room to try and sleep again. Even though he was certain he had made no noise Skye clearly heard him.

“Ward, is everything ok?”

“Yes, go back to sleep.”

“You were gone a while. Has something happened?”

“I went to check on the kids. But no. Nothing is wrong.”

He felt her move towards him and gently put her hand on his arm. With a sigh he began to explain.

“I had a nightmare. I saw the team being killed. I woke up but it still felt so real. I went to convince myself it wasn’t.”

He could feel himself begin to shake and knew she would be able to feel it too. She pulled him to her, trying to comfort him. 

“Oh, Grant.”

“I thought if I checked on everyone I could make the images go away.”

“Did it work?”

“Sort of.”

“Lie down.”

“What?”

“Lie down.” She manoeuvred herself so she was lying back down in the bed with him in her arms. 

“Go back to sleep. I’ll be here. Then you’ll know you’re not alone. What you see isn’t real. I’ll be here and you’ll know that. Will that help?”

He nodded, not knowing how to voice his feelings. He concentrated on her breathing using it as an anchor to reality. He felt himself relax.

“Skye.”

“Hmm?”  
“Thank you.”

“Anytime Grant. Anytime.” 

**************************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok hope you liked this. Something very fluffy after the final. I thought we all needed that. For those asking the will be some skyeward parts in the future I just wanted to build it up slowly. Thanks again to Amaya for reading this and correcting my mistakes


	8. Chapter 8

It started simply enough. Phil had a slight temperature and was very clingy that night. Ward hadn’t worried too much; Mel had been a bit sniffy the whole day so he just assumed that she had caught a cold and passed it on to Phil. He’d done what he could to make the toddler more comfortable, eventually getting him to sleep. He hadn’t thought much more about it, being totally exhausted from running around after the kids all day. He had fallen into bed gratefully, hoping he would get a full night of sleep. 

The first thing that gave him a clue that something was wrong was the absence of Skye in the bed when he woke. He always woke before her, a habit ingrained since the academy. He knew that she liked to lie in, and normally he tried not to wake her when he got up so she could sleep while the kids were still asleep. 

The second clue was the wailing that was coming from the cot at the end of the bed. Phil had clearly woken up. Normally he would lie quietly just looking around until somebody picked him up. This morning he was crying, rolling around in the cot. Moving to comfort him, Ward noticed that he was rubbing his skin in an agitated manner. His skin was covered in angry looking red spots, which were getting worse every time he rubbed them. Ward quickly removed his pyjamas and found that the spots were covering his whole body. He had chickenpox. No wonder the poor guy was crying. 

Lifting him from the cot he quickly moved into the bathroom where he knew they kept some calamine lotion, which would hopefully soothe Phil’s skin. Having covered both Phil and himself in the lotion, he headed out of the bedroom. Phil was still trying to scratch his skin, so he needed to find something to put over his hands. A noise from down the corridor had him diverting his direction to the main bathroom in the house. 

The smell hit him before he walked through the door. Leo and Jemma were sat beside the bath, cuddled together shivering. Mel was leaning over the toilet, throwing up, sheen of sweat covering her brow. All of them looked complete miserable and were covered in red spots.

“Chickenpox.” Ward commented to Skye, who was sat on the edge of the bath holding back Mel’s hair while simultaneously trying to look after the other two. Skye simply nodded back at him. Ward moved over to the other two and saw that they weren’t seriously ill just running a fever. 

“Come on you two. Let’s get you out of here and tucked up. You’ll soon feel better.”

Still carrying Phil, he quickly got both of them covered in lotion to soothe their skin, before tucking them both up in Jemma’s bed. He remembered when he had chickenpox when he was little; all he wanted to do was stay in bed and sleep. He saw that Jemma and Leo were the same. He quickly got them to eat some soup and left them watching Robin Hood on the TV. While doing this Phil had fallen asleep in his arms, so he went and laid him back in his cot. With him sleeping peacefully, Ward was able to grab the thermometer from his bathroom. He was concerned about the temperature of both Leo and Phil. Both had a slight temperature and would need an eye kept on them. Jemma was fine apart from being itchy and shivery: she was happily singing along to the movie. 

Mel was still feeling sick and refusing to move from beside the toilet, but didn’t have a temperature. Ward quickly assured Skye he had the rest under control, leaving her to look after Mel. She was trying to convince the girl to remove her death grip on the toilet and go and lie in her bed but was having little luck. Leaving her, Ward went back to check on the other two, finding Leo looking paler than when he had left him. He was shivering more than before but when Ward took his temperature it had risen. Almost to dangerous levels. Lifting the limp boy out of the bed he carried him into his bedroom, heading for the en-suite as Mel was still in the other bathroom. Phil was once again crying and was covered in sweat. Deciding it was better to be careful, as his temperature was also high, Ward grabbed him and headed for the shower. 

He set the shower to lukewarm before carrying both boys into it. He quickly found the easiest way to keep both of them under the water was to sit on the floor with Leo on his lap holding Phil. Neither liked being under the water but both slowly began to cool down. He was just breathing a sigh of relief when he heard shouting.

“Daddy!”

“I’m in the bathroom.”

He heard running feet before Mel burst into the room.

“Mummy collapsed.” She cried. 

Ward jumped up. 

“Stay with the boys.” He ordered as he rushed from the room, not caring that he was dripping water everywhere. 

He burst into the other bathroom to find Skye slumped on the floor. Her skin was hot to touch, but his careful examination revealed she hadn’t bumped her head. He carefully lifted her into his arms and carried her back into the bedroom where she would be more comfortable and he could get a better look at her. Her skin had lost its usual glow, her breathing coming in small gasps. He had a slight debate with himself before removing her top. An angry red rash covered her shoulders and arms. She also had chickenpox, but it seemed to be a more severe reaction than the children. 

Noticing he was soaking her he quickly stripped off his shirt and grabbed his phone. As he turned back to the bed he noticed a worried face watching him from the bathroom. He tried to smile reassuringly at Mel but wasn’t convinced he managed it. Hitting speed dial he was relieved when it was answered quickly.

“Need you here. Chickenpox. Skye’s poorly. Difficulty breathing. Come quick.”

He heard confirmation on the other end of the phone before hanging up. Help was on its way, that was all that kept him from completely panicking. 

*************************************

Bruce arrived quickly after Ward’s phone call bringing with him some medical supplies and some help in the form of Maria Hill.

“Where is she?” asked Bruce, noticing the frantic look on Ward’s face.

“Bedroom.”

Bruce quickly headed upstairs to see his patient leaving Maria to calm Ward down and check up on the children.

“It will be okay, Ward. Now, let’s look at the rest of the children.”

With Maria’s help they quickly got all the children changed and stripped the beds so they were all able to sleep in clean beds. After the shower Leo and Phil’s temperatures had dropped and they were now curled up on Leo’s bed fast asleep. Mel had finally been convinced to leave the bathroom and was lying on her bed reading, with a bucket beside her in case she thought she was going to be sick again. Jemma was lying in her bed fast asleep cuddling her teddy bear. 

With all the children looked after Maria quickly began to look after Ward. Upon hearing that he had yet to eat anything that day she sent him to sit in the living room while she made him toast and some soup. He managed to eat most of it before Bruce came back downstairs. Before he could ask anything Bruce spoke.

“She is fine. I gave her some antibiotics and her breathing has returned to normal.”

Ward let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding.

“I thought she had chickenpox before.”

“From her files it appears she had. She obviously just didn’t build up immunity to it. That was why she had such a bad reaction. But as I said she will be fine. How are you feeling?”

“Me? I’m fine.”

“You don’t look fine. Why don’t you go lie down for a bit? Maria and I will look after the children while you get some rest.”

He was about to object when Maria spoke.

“You look like hell Ward. Do what the doctor said. Think of it as an order if it makes you feel better.”

Resigned, Ward nodded to both before slowly heading upstairs. Before heading into his room he checked on the children. They were all asleep with Mel having fallen asleep with her book on her face. Smiling he headed into the bedroom and found Skye sleeping peacefully as well, her breathing now normal. 

Lying down facing her he watched as she breathed in and out, glad she was going to be ok. Leaning forward he placed a gentle kiss on her forehead, making sure not to wake her.

“You really scared me today Rookie. Please don’t do that again. I don’t think I could take it.”

*************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have never fallen asleep like Mel does in this, ahem. Poor Ward, Skye really gave him a shock. Next time the little family will get another visitor.


	9. Chapter 9

It had been a long week. Skye had stayed in bed, under orders from Bruce, while she recovered from chickenpox. This had left Ward alone with the children. For the first couple of days he had been running around after all of them, as the children were still recovering as well. However, once they had got better he was left alone to try and entertain four children on his own. Having been stuck in bed for a few days they had more energy than ever, leaving Ward feeling completely drained. It didn’t help that he was also checking on Skye every 5 minutes to make sure she was ok and didn’t need anything. It had got to the point where Skye had ordered Mel to keep him from going into their bedroom, which she managed, quite successfully. Skye was grateful for his attention and care, but didn’t want him to wear himself out trying to do too much. Bruce and Maria tried to help: both were busy during the day but they both came every night, giving Ward a break and reassuring him that Skye was recovering.

They also brought news of the investigation into what had happened to the team. Bruce and Tony were still having no luck finding a way to reverse what had happened. They had hoped that the footage of the bus would give some answers but apparently it had yet to yield more clues. 

Maria brought news of what was happening at Shield, informing Ward of the latest developments as she unpacked whatever takeaway she had picked up for the night’s tea. After they had all eaten Maria and Bruce would play with the kids for a while, giving Skye and Ward a welcome hour off. Ward normally retreated to the bedroom and caught up on reading, with Skye lying beside him surfing the web. Both had come to enjoy the time away from the kids just to themselves and the kids loved playing with the other adults and had begun to call them auntie and uncle, which Bruce and Maria loved.

One day Ward had woken up with such a headache that he couldn’t cope with dealing with boisterous children. Skye was still under orders to stay in bed so she couldn’t help look after them. Sighing Ward quickly made a plan. Gathering all the children he ushered them into his and Skye’s bedroom.

“We’re having a pyjama day.” He announced. 

Leo ran over to Phil and lifted him from the cot before jumping onto the bed. He had been very concerned since Phil had been poorly, spending a lot of his time sitting beside his cot reading to him. Skye was sat in the middle of the bed with the two girls sat in front of her. Ward quickly selected a DVD to watch before climbing back into bed. Propping himself up he took the coffee that Skye offered him, smiling as the boys reclined against his legs. Almost as if they had planned it all the kids were lying between him and Skye. Phil was practically lying on Leo and kept pulling Jemma’s hair but she didn’t seem to mind. Skye smiled at all the children and began eating her breakfast that Ward had brought her. He hadn’t had chance to eat as Mel had moved so she was lying in his arms. When it became apparent that she wasn’t going to move, Skye started feeding him being careful not to drop porridge on his shirt. She couldn’t help but grin when it dribbled down his chin. He glared at her over Mel, but she simply smirked back at him and wiped it away. 

The kids enjoyed watching Frozen, happily singing along with the songs. Skye even managed to catch Ward grinning and enjoying the film. She had being trying to convince him to watch it for a while but had yet to convince him. Maybe this was a way to get him to watch other things. She knew he would enjoy the film but he had objected saying it was a kid’s film. Like that mattered. It was a good film no matter who it was made for. 

As Ward couldn’t be bothered to get out of bed after that, they continued watching DVD’s the rest of the day. When Maria arrived and brought pizza for tea she found them all still in the bed. She couldn’t help taking pictures with her phone before any of them noticed. She needed to show Bruce this later. Upon noticing her hovering in the doorway Skye beckoned her in. In order to fit Maria on the bed Skye moved so she was practically lying on Ward, which gave Maria enough room to sit where she had been lying. Jemma quickly moved onto Maria’s lap and Leo moved into Skye’s arms. Mel lay beside Ward’s legs with propped up against her. The pizza was passed around with Ward now feeding Skye, as she couldn’t move due to Leo. He seemed to be attempting to get it all around her face, much to her annoyance. At first she thought it was an accident but it kept happening and she knew he wasn’t that uncoordinated. She glared at him but he simply brushed away the tomato sauce from the face. 

“Idiot.” She mouthed.

He just grinned mischievously at her. She didn’t know what had caused this change in him, but she liked it. Maria stayed to watch the end of Bolt, which they had watched while eating tea. Skye loved the film but the end always made her cry. She couldn’t help but cry at the end when Bolt stayed with Penny during the fire. She knew everything would be fine but it always made her sad. Tears started flowing down her cheek as it got to that part. A tender hand caressed away the tears. Turning she saw Ward looking at her, his hand drying her tears. Once he had caught all of them he pulled her so she was cuddled into him, her head resting on his chest.

For all they had all been poorly recently today had been a good day.

*******************************************

As Skye had finally been allowed to get out of bed and it was a beautiful day they decided to celebrate in the garden. Maria had snuck off from work; bring with her some folding chairs. It meant they could enjoy the beautiful weather and keep an eye on the kids. As she wasn’t allowed to over exert herself Skye was sitting in the chair enjoying the warmth of the sun on her skin. It was made all the better knowing she wasn’t going to have to put sun cream on any of the kids. That was Ward’s job. Initially he had allowed the older ones to put it on themselves, but it quickly became apparent that they weren’t doing a proper job of it. This had led to a 10 minute screaming match. Skye had no idea Mel hated her face being touched that much. Phil, who everyone expected to be the most difficult, had been a complete angel, quite happily allowing Ward to cover him in cream. He was now sat playing with Leo with some building blocks. Leo was trying to build some sort of structure, which Phil was trying to knock down. Both were giggling and it had turned into a competition between them. Mel and Jemma were doing handstands on the grass with Maria timing how long they could stay up for. Ward was sat beside Skye, alternatively reading his book and keeping an eye on the boys. That left Skye to just relax and sunbathe. 

“Hi again.” 

Skye turned and saw Clare waving at her from across the drive. 

“I haven’t seen you around for a little while.”

“No. We had a case of chickenpox so everyone was kept in doors.” Explained Skye.  
“Ouch. Glad you all seem to be better now. Chickenpox is worst. Unfortunately, if one gets it they all do.”

“Yeah, that happened with us.”

“Auntie Maria! Did you see?” Yelled Jemma.

“Yes sweetie, I did. It was very good.”

“Oh, Clare, this is Maria. She’s… Grant’s sister. Maria, this is Clare.”

Skye skin prickled as she felt Ward’s gaze on her. They had to explain her appearance some how. Plus she looked more like Ward than Skye. 

As both women were exchanging greetings a car pulled up at the side of the road. It immediately caught Skye’s attention, as it was completely black, with tinted windows. Skye’s instincts were screaming at her that this car could cause trouble. A sideways glance at Ward told her he thought the same. His posture had become more rigid, with his feet firmly planted on the floor. He looked like a coiled spring, ready to take on what ever danger was coming for them. 

As the car door opened, Skye was plotting the best route to the children, knowing that Ward would meet whatever danger was coming and buy them a few crucial seconds to get the children safe. As the person stepped out the children all noticed a change in the adults and went quiet, sensing there was danger. 

“Grandpa!” Yelled Phil, throwing himself across the yard. 

That boy could move when he wanted to and he didn’t stop till he was clinging to the black clad leg of Nick Fury. Fury who was currently looking down at Phil as if he was a foreign object that he didn’t know what to do with. 

“Grandpa?” Clare puzzled.

“Oh! He’s my father. He adopted me when I was just little.” Skye supplied. 

It was the first thing she could think of. She didn’t exactly expect Phil to throw himself at Fury, never mind call him Grandpa. She more expected him to behave like the others, who were currently cowering behind Maria while she looked at Fury in horror. Clearly she hadn’t told him she was coming here. She couldn’t blame the kids; Fury gave off an aura of fear. 

“Grandpa!” Insisted Phil, gripping onto Fury’s leg tighter. 

‘Oh no.’ Thought Skye. ‘I recognise that face.’

As expected when Ward stepped forward to prise Phil from Fury’s leg the toddler gripped tighter and began to cry.

“Eh Sir. It might be easier if you just hug him.” Ward suggested tentatively.

“Hug him?” Fury seemed incredulous.   
‘Maybe he has never had a hug before.’ Skye wondered. The thought made her incredibly sad. Everyone deserved to be hugged.

“He calls your dad sir?” Wondered Clare.

“Oh it has something to do with being married to his baby girl. I think he threatened him.” Skye supplied.

Fury was going to kill her when he found out about that. At least the threatening part was believable. Fury threatened everybody he met by just standing there. Skye couldn’t help the smile when one of the most feared men in the world bent down and gingerly put his arms around the crying toddler. A clicking noise made Skye turn. Maria was quickly putting her phone away in her pocket having snapped a picture of the scene before them. Seeing Skye looking at her she pressed her finger to her lips. Fury pulled back quickly and Ward swooped in and plucked Phil from Fury’s leg. 

“Shall we move inside?” Ward asked, looking at the women and kids.

*******************************************************

“Sir” began Ward.

Fury simply held a finger up to silence him. Ward sat back in the chair and held onto a struggling Phil. He kept trying to escape Ward’s grasp and head toward Fury. Ward didn’t want to let him go, he wasn’t sure what Fury would do. His face when he had to hug Phil had been bad enough. 

“I arrived at the base to find that my Deputy Director is missing. Not only that but she has kept disappearing for the past week!”

“Sir” began Maria.

“Not only that but my two best scientists are busy going gaga over these kids. When I sent them to you I meant for them to find a cure, not become babysitters.”

“Grandpa,” wailed Phil.

“Why does he keep saying that? I’m not his Grandpa!”

“Sir, he likes family. He calls me Dad, Skye, mum, and Maria, auntie. I think he just likes having a family. We allowed it as it helps our cover.”

“Get him to stop calling me Grandpa.”

“I’m not sure I can, sir.”

“Never mind then. As you have commandeered my staff you might as well keep them. But if something urgent comes up I need them back. Understood?”

“Yes Sir.”

Ward lost his grip on Phil who immediately headed towards Fury. After a quick staring contest with the toddler, Fury sighed and picked him up, sitting him on his knee. Looking at his agents he warned.

“Not a word about this!”

“No sir.”

*****************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Grandpa Fury!! He he


	10. Chapter 10

The quiet was unnerving. The entire house was quiet, which Skye loved, but she was now used to the noise the children made. They were all down for naps at the moment, so Skye was busy tidying the house. She loved the kids but they were hard work. Both her and Ward took the opportunity when the kids were asleep to tidy and do the chores around the house. He was currently out shopping while she cleaned; they hadn’t taken the kids shopping since the incident the last time. They were running out of food so shopping was necessary. For small beings the kids ate a hell of a lot of food. Plus Ward was beginning to get annoyed by all the takeaways they kept eating. The Robot was a health nut and the takeaways were beginning to cause his workings to break down. Skye couldn’t really complain, she was getting fed up of takeaway as well. Plus Ward had volunteered to cook which he was fantastic at, and he had promised to cook Skye’s favourite dish, so it was win-win for her. 

It was just going to be them for tea. Fury had banned Maria and Bruce from visiting; at least until some of the cases that had been piling up had been solved. When they were leaving Bruce had promised to send more help. Apparently some of the other Avengers had heard about what had happened to the team and wanted to come and visit. Hence why Skye was cleaning. Although this wasn’t actually her house she didn’t want people seeing it a mess. Plus it wasn’t every day you have Avengers visiting the house. She knew that if Phil found out the house was a mess when he returned to his adult self, he would be so disappointed. Plus if she left the toys spread all over the house somebody was going to trip over one. It would probably be her; the Robot had good reflexes. 

As she was tidying she heard a wheezing noise. Looking around concerned Skye couldn’t find anything. She moved further into the dinning room where the noise appeared to be coming from. Bending down to look under the table Skye got a shock. Lying on her side hyperventilating was Jemma. She was curled into a ball and appeared to be crying. 

“Jemma, baby.” Skye crawled under the table slowly so as not to spook the young girl. 

It looked like she was having a panic attack and Skye didn’t want to make it worse, not knowing what had caused it. She had a few panic attacks before and knew that the simplest thing could make it worse. 

“Mummy.” Jemma cried, breaking Skye’s heart. She sounded so scared.

“I’m here, baby. You’re ok.” 

She pulled her into her arms, brushing Jemma’s hair from her face. Jemma clung to Skye but her breathing began to slow down. Skye rocked her until she had calmed enough.

“Baby, look at me. Can you tell me what caused this?”

“I was dreaming. I was with Leo but we were in this capsule underwater. We were trapped and couldn’t escape. Water was pouring into it and we couldn’t escape. Leo went under first and then…”

“Oh, baby.”

“It seemed so real. Then I couldn’t breathe.”

“It’s ok. You’re safe; so is Leo.”

“Why do I feel like this? I don’t like it.”

“It’s your body reacting to the fear. It’s normal, sweetie.”

“I don’t like it.”

“I know, it’s horrible. But you’ll be ok.”

“Can we see Leo?”

“Of course, baby.”

Skye crawled out from beneath the table and picked up Jemma. She quickly headed upstairs and crept into Leo’s room. He was still asleep and was clutching a monkey toy. Jemma wriggled in Skye’s arms to be put down and then climbed into bed with him. She curled around him and closed her eyes. Skye smiled down at her and pressed a gentle kiss on her forehead. She stayed and watched the two sleep. She was worried that Jemma would have another attack. She knew that the older Jemma was scared of drowning and had dreams about it. She hadn’t known it was as bad enough to give her panic attacks though. She had never felt so helpless as when she had seen her beneath the table. 

Once she was sure Jemma was sleeping peacefully again she headed back downstairs. She was to caught up in her thoughts to continue tidying. She wasn’t sure how long she had sat on the sofa before she heard Ward return. 

“Hey I’m back. I got the cereal you like… what happened? What’s the matter?”

Ward dropped the shopping and ran to her. Dropping to his knees before her, he grasped her arms and made her look at him.

“Are the kids alright? Are you alright?” She could hear the panic in his voice.

She reached out and touched his face to calm him.

“We’re all fine.”

“What happened?”

“It was Jemma, she had a panic attack. I just… I felt so helpless.”

He didn’t reply but just gently pulled her into his arms. 

“I’m sure that you helped her.”

“But what if that wasn’t enough?”

“Did you stay with her while she had it?”

“Yes but...”

“Was she calmer once you left her?”

“Yes.”

“Did she understand what had happened to her?”

“Yes.”

“Then how could you do anymore?”

“I just… I don’t know.”

“You did fantastically, I’m sure. You’ll have given comfort when she needed it and explained what happened. What more could you have done?”

“Nothing, I guess.”

Skye leant into his embrace, enjoying the comfort only he could give. He placed a kiss on her forehead before speaking again.

“Jemma will be fine, Skye. She has you looking out for her. How can she not be fine?”

“I think your wiring has come loose again Robot.” Skye joked to prevent herself crying.

“Only with you. Only with you.” 

********************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So just a short chapter this time. Unfortunately exams have kept me busy. Next time will be a more fluffy chapter I promise.


	11. Chapter 11

Skye wasn’t sure how long she sat with Ward. Even when at the orphanage she had never really thought about having children. She wasn’t sure it was something she wanted. Looking after the team had opened her eyes and shown how difficult it was. She wasn’t sure how single mums did it. She was so glad she had Ward; she knew he was as scared as she was but they supported each other and could help each other.

She knew she should let him go and unpack the shopping but she didn’t want to let him go. He was opening up more and more. It was fantastic but terrifying. When he was her bossy SO she knew how to cope and how to push his buttons. But when he was interacting with the kids and loosening up she wasn’t sure how to react. She loved it but was making her face her feelings about him. She wasn’t quite prepared to face them yet. Too much had happened recently. Besides now wasn’t the best time to look at them, maybe once everything had returned to normal then she could make a decision. 

“Thank you.”

“Anytime Rookie.”

A noise from upstairs made her look up.

“Kids are awake.”

“I’ll go. You stay here.” 

She watched as he rose and headed towards the stairs, giving her a fantastic view of him. For a guy that was normally oblivious to how women looked at him he knew how to dress. His jeans clung to his body, giving an exceptional view of his butt. Working out gave him an admirable figure, though Skye normally only got to view his abs. His butt was just as good as them. 

************************************************

Ward headed upstairs to find out what his little monkeys were up to. He never thought he would think of the team as family, never mind have take care of them. He was concerned about Skye. It wasn’t like her to loose it like that. Maybe they needed a break. He would ask the others to take care of the kids for a couple of hours later so he could take her somewhere she nice where she could relax. He knew she wouldn’t want to leave the kids for a long period of time, and to be honest neither did he but both needed a break. 

Putting that thought to one side for now he headed into the girls’ room where the noise was coming from. Making sure he was treading lightly he snuck up to the room. He wanted to see what they were up to without them knowing he was there. May normally couldn’t be snuck up upon, but as she was currently a child he might have a better chance. Reaching the door he peaked into the room, freezing at what he saw there.

Somebody had rescued Phil from his cot in their room as he was sat in the middle of the elder three. All the kids were holding pillows and were hitting each other with them while feathers flew around them. They were hitting each other, but he noticed they were being especially careful with Phil. It was a joy to watch them have so much fun. As adults they were always under so much pressure, it was lovely to see them so carefree. 

“Daddy!”  
Phil had noticed him standing at the door, grinning and waving him in delight. The look of shock and horror on the others’ faces had Ward struggling to keep a straight face. There wasn’t really much he could say at the moment. If he tried to say anything he would begin laughing. Feathers had settled in their hair and were covering the floor of the room. They must have gone through a few a pillows by the amount of feathers covering the surface.

They were all looking at Ward with anticipation waiting for his comments on what had happened. Before he could say anything he was hit from behind. As the kids giggled behind him he turned to find Skye running towards their bedroom. Oh so that was what she wanted to play. Chasing after her, his long legs giving him the advantage as he could cover more ground. He entered their room almost behind her but she was nowhere in sight. One of the pillows on the bed was conspicuously missing. Moving forward carefully his eyes scanning the room he grabbed a pillow. Now they were both armed. He was knocked off balance when he was once again hit from behind. She had hidden behind the door, the minx. Turning he quickly returned fire, but evidently she had been listening during training as she dodged the shot. He was quickly hampered in his movements as the children burst into the room giggling and latched themselves onto his legs. Skye just kept laughing as she hit him with the pillow. After a quick head shot followed by a blow to his body he knew that this was the end. Loosing his balance he fell backwards, landing on the bed.

“Pile on!” Order Skye with a smirk towards him.

The kids quickly obeyed her, with Mel sitting on his lap to stop him moving while the others clambered up onto the bed. Leo and Jemma both pinned his legs and, once Skye had lifted him onto the bed, Phil sat on his chest. 

“You are so going to pay for this!” Ward threatened with a grin.

“Sure, whatever you say dear.” Skye laughed.

******************************************

“Strange. They normally answer fairly quickly.” Commented Maria as she stood outside the house with Clint and Nat. “I have a key so we can get in.”

Entering the house they found the downstairs completely empty and more worryingly the house silent. She watched as Clint and Nat react to this becoming more careful and alert. Moving upstairs she found the hallway covered in feathers. Following the trail into the main bedroom she paused at what she saw there before beckoning the two assassins to come and look. 

On the bed asleep was the entire team. On one half of the bed all the kids were lying together using each other as pillows. On the other half lay Skye and Ward, Skye lying completely on top of him with his arms holding her close to him.

Slipping out and closing the door so they didn’t wake them Clint spoke.

“Cute. I now know why you wanted us to visit Maria. But I thought you said there wasn’t anything going on between those two?”

“There wasn’t until recently. If you ask them they’ll deny it but I keep finding them cuddled up like that.”

“It’s cute.” He grinned suddenly.

“Clint” warned Nat, knowing that look.

“What? You know undercover is one of the best times to play matchmaker. They are playing husband and wife. I’m not going to do anything serious. But I do wonder if they will admit to their feelings?”

“Oh God.” Commented Nat.

Maria just looked at him shaking her head. He did have a point. She was going to have to make sure she was around for this. Those two had been ignoring reality for a while and knowing Clint he would get the kids involved. This could end one of two ways.


	12. Chapter 12

They had been visited early on this morning. Apparently they had visitors last night but had missed them due to them being asleep. They were to stay for a little while then were free to do their own thing and enjoy a break from the children. To be fair, it wasn’t too much of a hardship looking after the children but they needed some time apart. They had a quick discussion and agreed to spend the day together as neither had anything they particularly wanted to do. Skye had seen a film advertised which looked interesting, so they were going to watch that before having a meal together. It was only going to be an afternoon off but it would do them both good.

Maria couldn’t stay for long so it was going to be up to Clint and Nat to keep the kids occupied. Ward wasn’t sure what was going on but Clint had seemed way too eager for him and Skye to spend time together. There was a gleam in his eye as he listened to them discuss their plans for the day. At least he now was occupied, keeping him out of trouble. He was currently teaching Mel how to shoot with a toy bow and arrow. There was a lot of giggling going on. He hoped there was going to be a house to come back to. Mel was bad enough on her own without Clint’s encouragement. Normally Nat would keep Clint in line however she was currently busy playing with Phil. She was throwing the little boy in the air, making him squeal in delight. Leo was sat beside her taking apart one of her weapons, though she had removed the dangerous parts first. Jemma was sat beside her feet playing with the chemical kit the assassins had brought as a present from Bruce. It was strange seeing two of the world’s most deadly assassins so domesticated. But then he never thought he would be doing what he was now. 

“They seem to have everything in hand.”

Skye was stood beside him, keys in hand watching over her little family.

“For now.”

“I’m sure the kids won’t be any trouble for them.”

“It’s not them I’m worried about!”

“They are Shield’s best. What do you think will happen?”

As she said this they watched as Clint passed Jemma a different chemical, causing an eruption of foam from the beaker, covering her and Nat. Ward looked at Skye sardonically causing her to wince.

“Forget I said that.”

“Ah ha. Come on. It’s probably better if we go now. Then we’ll not know what happens!”

Turning back to the rest of the family he spoke, raising his voice slightly:

“Ok, we’re going now. Try to not get into too much trouble.”

“I’m sure the kids will be fine, Ward.” Nat replied over Phil’s squeals.

“I’m not talking to the kids!”

Both assassins gave him mischievous smiles in response. Shaking his head he guided Skye to the door, muttering:

“I don’t want to know. I don’t want to know.”

Turning he glared directly at the grinning assassins,

“I want the house still standing when we get back.”

Clint simply nodded and watched him close the door. Once he had heard the car pulling away and it was safe to reveal his plan he turned to the kids.

“So guys, who wants to help me plan a surprise for your mum and dad?”

******************************************

They came back to find the house in one piece which was an achievement. Though there were no lights on downstairs, which was suspicious, they weren’t that the late and the kids should still be up. Both had enjoyed the afternoon, with Ward actually enjoying the film when he didn’t expect too. The meal had given them a chance to talk, something that they never really had a chance to do before. They had spoken about their families and how they had now found a place in the world with the team. Neither of them had the greatest upbringing but the team had allowed them to know what a normal family was like. She had him laughing with stories of the mischief she had got up to in the orphanage with friends. In return he had told her stories of the academy, revealing he wasn’t as straight laced as the others had believed. As nobody had believed he would do such things he could have possibly got away with murder. 

Entering the house he was surprised to find a single candle sitting on the coffee table, giving off a gentle glow. Beside it sat a bottle of wine with two glasses and a note. Moving to the table he picked up the note. 

Might as well finish off the evening properly. Don’t worry about the kids, they’ve been angels. Enjoy the wine. Clint. 

“Grant?”

He passed her the note and began opening the wine. 

“Might as well make the most of it.”

She grinned in reply, taking a seat on the sofa. Having poured them both a glass of wine, he moved to join her. The conversation that had flowed so easily before was now non-existent. Maybe it was the atmosphere. The single candlelight gave off a different feeling, highlighting only her features making everything else fade into darkness. It was beginning to get hard to swallow, the wine wasn’t helping. Turning to face her more directly, he saw she was leaning closer into him as if to talk to him. Lean closer to her, he noticed her glance at his face before looking away again, making his breath hitch. They were now barely inches apart, enabling him to see the depth of the colour of her eyes, which he could get lost in. He could feel her own breath upon his skin, it was as ragged as his was. 

“Daddy!”  
He jumped as his lap was suddenly filled with the warm bodies of children as Mel and Leo dove into his lap. Skye was juggling wine glass and Jemma.

“Sorry to interrupt but the children couldn’t wait to see you.” Nat commented as she brought in a squirming Phil.

Ward ignored the implication of what she would be interrupting, though he could feel the flush up the back of his neck. 

“Daddy, we missed you.” Leo bounced on his lap.

“We were going to leave you alone longer but we missed you. Did you miss us?”

“Of course Jemma.”

He smiled at the delight on the little girl’s face but was careful not to look at Skye. He felt bad for lying to her but it would hurt her if he admitted that his thoughts had been completely taken by the woman he was with. 

“You should be in bed.”

“But Daddy…”

“No buts. Come on. Mummy and I will put you to bed.”

“Clint and I will leave you to it then. We can leave you in peace and then once you are done you can continue with whatever you were up to before we interrupted.”

He glared at her, hoping it would shut her up. Could she make the situation more awkward?! 

*************************************

A couple of days later he was lying in bed. He had managed to sleep longer than normal, so long that Skye had already left the room taking Phil with her. Thankfully it hadn’t been awkward after that night but then they had been busy with the children. Keeping them occupied was a full time occupation. It was surprisingly quiet, even outside seemed to have been turned down. It was a Sunday so it wasn’t really a surprise. He knew he should get up but it was nice just to lie and not do anything. Besides at some point an inquisitive child would come and seek him, cuddling up beside him. He had never done it with his family but had quickly found he liked it. It brightened up his morning and he wished it would happen every day.

The thundering steps told him he was getting company soon and more than one person. The door burst open with all of the children bounding into the room, each carrying something. Skye followed more sedately carrying both Phil and a tray containing breakfast items. He was about to jump up and help her when she nodded at him to keep him in bed. Placing Phil on the bed she quickly sat down beside him, putting the tray across his lap. Once everything was settled she nodded at the children. As one they spoke:

“Happy Father’s Day!”

Wait? It was Father’s day? They had got him presents? 

“Daddy. Daddy. Open, open.” 

He took the present automatically, remembering when he had been in Leo’s position. He had watched as his father tore up his card and thrown his present in the bin. He swore he would never be like him. Pulling Phil onto his lap, having moved the tray to one side for now, he cuddled Mel and Leo closer to his sides, with Jemma sat between Leo’s legs. With the children adding comfortable warmth to him he proceeded to open his cards and presents. He had got a card from each of the kids. He opened each present with care and received socks and ties with No. 1 Dad on them. He also got a box of his favourite sweets and some new cufflinks. 

“Thank you. I love all of them.”

“Mummy helped us pick them.” Piped up Mel. 

“Mummy has good taste.” 

“Love you Daddy.” Waved Phil.

It brought tears to his eyes. He now understood the absolute love of children. 

“I love you too. All of you.”

All the kids piled on to give him a hug. Looking over at Skye who was watching with fondness, he smiled and mouthed;

“Thank you.”

He knew how much effort she had gone to. This was one of the best days of his life. 

********************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So people asked for a bit more Skyeward (insert evil laugh). Please don’t kill me! Nat and Clint will be back later on, who could resist staying away from the family for too long.


	13. Chapter 13

“Mel! Mel!”

“What?”

“We need your help.”

“Why?”

“We want to help mum and dad.” Pouted Leo, knowing she wouldn’t be able to resist.

“Dad’s away. Mum said.”

“I know. That’s why we want to help. Jemma thought we could we could wash but we can’t reach to put the soap in. You can climb up though.”

“You need to play with Phil then.”

“He can help too.”

“Cookie!” Cried Phil, nodding. 

Leo held out his hand to him and smiled when Phil took it. They both followed Mel to the back of the house where Jemma and the washing machine was. They had wanted to do something to help, as mum was really busy. Dad had been called away this morning, which had upset mum. He had said he wouldn’t be long, but Auntie Maria and Auntie Nat couldn’t come and help so it was just them and mum. Jemma had decided they want to help and all they need to do was put soap in the machine and switch it on. It couldn’t be easier except for the fact that they couldn’t reach it.

“Cookie!” Cried Phil again.

“Next.” Promised Leo as they found Jemma trying to jump high so she could put the soap in the washer.

May quickly jumped for the top of the counter and pulled herself up so she could reach the machine properly. Jemma grinned and passed her the soap. 

“Where does it go?”

“That slot thing.”

“How much?”

“Mum just pours some in. Just put some in.”

They watched as Mel poured the soap in and then pressed the button to start the machine. Grinning at the three on the floor she asked,

“Next?”

“COOKIE!”  
Jumping down from the counter she headed back into the kitchen to get Phil his cookie. If she didn’t he would keep crying which would upset mum. They were trying to be helpful so giving him one would keep mum happy. She quickly found where Dad had hid them in the cupboard; he could never hide things from her. He didn’t like them eating too many cookies so he tried to hide them but she always knew where he put them. 

She gave them all a cookie and sat back on the floor with them to eat it. They had just finished eating them when they heard a noise coming from the washing machine. She went to investigate knowing the others would trail along behind her. The machine was shaking from side to side on the counter, the clothes unable to be seen for bubbles. She turned and glared at Jemma.

“That doesn’t seem right.”

“Really? What do we do?”

“Why are you asking me? You’re the oldest.”

“You know more about it than me.”

“Stop it. Then open it?”

“Fine.”

She quickly clambered back up and stopped the machine. Opening the door was more difficult because she had to lean out to pull it. She knew that opening it would pull her off the counter so adjusted her grip so she could hold onto the door and swing out with it. Once it was open she could just drop to the floor. She was however unprepared for what happened next.

The door opened as she expected, but was followed by a flood of water and bubbles which quickly covered the floor and every stood on it. Poor Phil looked like a living snowman, he was that covered in bubbles. Everyone froze for a moment, taking in the sudden change in events, before everyone began talking at once. Leo and Jemma were trying to decide how to clean it up, Phil was giggling and playing with the bubbles. Mel was just concentrating on not slipping and figuring out how to land on the now soaking and slippery floor. 

“Mummy! Bubbles.” Giggled Phil, looking at the woman who had just appeared to find out what was going. 

“Mum.” Gasped Leo but she just shook her head and took in the mess before her. 

Mel watched as she tilted her head and looked at all of them for a few minutes. She then felt herself being lifted to the floor by her mum. Once back on the floor she went to stand with Leo and Jemma while Mum lifted a still giggling Phil free from his bubble nest. 

“We were just trying to help.” Cried Jemma. “Please don’t hurt us!”

Mel watched as her mum’s eyes widened. She didn’t appear to be angry but you never could tell with adults. 

“I’m not going to hurt you sweetie.”  
“Will dad?”

“No! Of course not.”

“We’re sorry. We just wanted to help.”

“I know sweetie. Now let’s get all this cleaned up and get changed then we can have some ice cream. How does that sound?”

“Ice cream!” 

“I’ll take that as a yes then. Come on.”

**************************************

Ward was grateful when he got home; it had been a long day, waiting to see Director Fury. He hadn’t wanted to leave Skye alone with the kids but he had been told it was urgent and to get his butt over there. He had spent most of the day just sat waiting before having a five-minute meeting with the Director. Why he couldn’t just have rang them, Ward didn’t understand. He hoped everything had been ok with the kids. It was late now so they should be in bed. He had missed them.

“Skye.” He called quietly as he shut the door.

“In the kitchen.”

He dropped the keys and his jacket on the table before heading in the kitchen to find her. She was opening a bottle of wine and already had two glasses out. 

“Everything ok? How are the kids?”

“Not bad. Though your kids did cause some problems today but nothing I could handle.”

“Why are they always my kids when they do something wrong?”

“Because you are the super spy.”

“What happened?”

“We had a little flood incident with the washer. They were trying to help. I’m still not sure what happened exactly but it ended with water and bubbles everywhere.”

“What else?”

“Why do you think there is something else?”

“You’re biting your lip. You’re trying to hide something.”

“They told me not to hurt them. Why would they ask that? What kind of adult would hurt a kid?”

“Hey.”   
He quickly removed her wine glass from her hand and pulled her into a hug. 

“It’s ok. I wish I could say it doesn’t happen. From what I know about the team, none had the best of childhoods so it is probably something that they have remembered from then.”

“I just wish I could do something about it.”

“You are. We are. We can give them a happy time now.”

“I know. I just hate it.”

“Me too. Me too.”

He held tight until he felt her begin to relax and regain her composure. Eventually she pulled back and wiped her eyes. They both grabbed their abandoned wine and headed into the living room.

“What did the Director want? You were gone longer than I expected.”

“Sorry about that. I didn’t expect to be gone as long. I had to wait around to see him. There are still no leads about what happened to the team. Stark is looking into a new lead and will let us know if he finds anything. If anything comes up they want me to lead the team.”

“Ok. Just make sure you’re careful when that happens.”

“I’m always careful. Anyway the main reason he wanted to see me is that he is sending us away for a bit.”

“Away? Like on holiday?”

“Exactly like that. We leave in two days. I don’t know where. I just know we’re flying somewhere and not on a Shield plane.”

“Flying! With four kids? Oh dear God. How long for?”

“Two weeks. Somewhere warm with a beach is all I got told.”

“Why?”

“At first he said because we need a holiday. When I pushed he finally admitted that Shield thought someone was sniffing around the house and trying to find the kids. He wanted us out of the way so he could take care of the threat.”

“Are we in immediate danger?” 

Ward watched as her mothering instinct kicked in. He knew how it felt he had done the exact same thing.

“No we’re fine for now. Fury specifically assured me of that. I don’t think we need worry about him ignoring our safety. The first thing he asked me when I got there was how was his grandson?”

“He likes us. Well Phil. But he really likes us!”

“Yeah, well I wouldn’t let anyone else know that. So we get an all-expense paid holiday.”

“Yeah but we also have to fly with four kids. How do you think we are going to manage that? We loose at least one whenever we go shopping.”

“I was thinking handcuffs!”

“Grant!”

“I’m kidding. Well only slightly. I popped into a store on the way back and bought some reins for them. Phil in a pushchair and these for the others we’ll be fine.”

Skye just looked at him. He knew she was right but if there was anything she had taught him was to look on the bright side of life. The kids would be little angels on the plane and cause no problems. Right.

“Come on. Drink up and let’s go to bed. I think we’re going to have a couple of busy days.”

**********************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So they are going on holiday. What problems do you think the kids will cause? I promise to update this when I get back, I don’t have internet on holiday. So it will be a couple of weeks before the next chapter.


	14. Flight

Skye looked around the room with amazement bordering on fear. She’d only been gone ten minutes. They’d quickly agreed a plan of action, with her packing clothes for both of them and the kids, while he packed the hand luggage. It seemed like the best idea as he was used to packing a large amount of stuff in a small bag. They didn’t want to give the kids much to carry so they had to carry the majority of it.

In front of her were two plain backpacks that were bursting at the seams. She had expected him to cut down what they needed to just the bare essentials but that clearly hadn’t happened. He had already labelled them, giving her the light of the bags.

“Ward, what the hell have you packed?”

“Well I wanted to make sure we had enough to keep them entertained. So I packed books for them all. They also have a game each plus a couple of games they can all play together. Then I thought well what if they don’t want to play or read so I packed some colouring books and pencils. Then I realised I didn’t have enough for one each so added some more. Then I saw the computer games and included them so they will definitely have enough to play with. Some times cases go missing so I included a pair of clothing for everyone. Oh then I added a snack and drink for everyone in case they get hungry of thirsty.”

She stared at him in disbelieve. Was this still the same Grant Ward she knew? He rubbed the back of his neck absently.

“I may have gone a bit overboard.”

“You think?”

“I just don’t want them to be bored. Especially in case we are delayed.”

“Delayed?”

“You’ve not flown very often outside the bus have you? It can happen. I remember one time where I was delayed seven hours. I was bored and I was an adult. We kept getting food vouchers but everyone was hot and they didn’t cover the costs. Kids were screaming and running riot. I didn’t want that to happen with ours just in case.”

“Grant Douglas Ward! Now you’ve gone and jinxed us.”

He looked at her with puppy dog eyes that she couldn’t resist. God he was adorable when he looked like that. It made her feel like she had kicked a puppy. All she wanted to do was pull him into a hug and cover his face in kisses. 

Whoa! Where had that come from? No she can’t think about kissing him. He is her SO! Plus they are currently the only agents on this team. She has to remain professional!

“Don’t give me those puppy dog eyes! It doesn’t work for the kids, it won’t work for you either.”

“Puppy dog eyes?” He asked in confusion while still giving her them.

Great! He doesn’t even realise he is doing it. Though that was probably a good thing. She’d give him whatever he wanted if he gave her that look and asked her. She would even do extra training and she hated training! The man was a menace! Far to good looking for his own good. He could either melt you or making you crawl for forgiveness with a single look. How could he not know about it?!

“Never mind. How about we cut down on some of the games? It will make everything a bit lighter.” She replied pulling out at least five games he had stuffed into the bag. “You can give me more stuff you know, I’m not that much of a lightweight.”

“You’re going to have Phil as well. I thought you’d be better with less.”

“He’s going to be in his pushchair. I think I’ll manage. You don’t have to carry everything you know. We’re doing this together.”

It took them another half hour to sort through everything Ward had packed, with Skye removing half of the things he had put in the bags. For a guy that lived a minimalist life he didn’t pack that way for the kids!

*******************************

To say the kids were excited about going away was an understatement. Leo and Mel danced around the table while Jemma let out a high-pitched squeal and babbled something so quickly they weren’t sure it was even English. Phil seemed completely bemused by the activity but quickly got caught up in the excitement. Once Ward explained they were going on a plane it was all he kept saying.

“So we’re going away?” asked Mel, dancing around the table excitedly.

“Yes sweetie.” Skye replied absently trying to understand what Jemma was talking about. 

“Plane!”

“Where’re we going?” Mel asked. “Is it Disneyland? Somewhere sunny?”

“Plane!!”

“Yes baby I know.” Skye bent and placed a kiss on Phil’s forehead before replying to Mel. “It’s a surprise. You’ll just have to wait and see.”

“Same as we do.” She muttered under her breath while lifting Jemma onto a chair to encourage her to eat breakfast. Ward had Leo and Mel under each arm and was sitting them down too. Fury still hadn’t told them where they were going so it was as much a surprise to the adults as the kids.

“We get to fly. Flying is so cool. But it can have an impact on the body. It’s to do with pressure. I can’t wait!” Jemma gushed.

“PLANE!!!!!”

“We know Phil. Soon but first you need to eat your breakfast.” Ward tried to calm him down so he could feed him banana. It failed with more banana ending up on the floor and on Ward than in Phil.  
“Remind me why this is a good idea.” Ward muttered to Skye as she passed him a cloth to clean up.

“It isn’t but we don’t have a choice. Fury ordered it.”

“Oh yeah. Remind me to kill him later.”

“He’s your boss!”

“So?”

*************************************

Thankfully the ride to the airport was fine. Phil was still yelling plane every now and then but appeared to have calmed down slightly. They were driven by an agent sent by Fury, who kept staring at the kids especially Phil. Eventually she grew fed up of the staring, leaning forward so she could speak with you him and Ward hearing her.

“Above your pay grade. Way above. I only know cause I hacked the file.” 

She grinned wickedly before winking at Ward, who appeared to having trouble keeping his strict agent face in place, his shoulders shaking with supressed mirth. The driver gave him a sideways look before pressing down on the accelerator. Apparently he wanted rid of his passengers as fast as possible. That was fine with her. She didn’t like unknown agents and Mr Grumpy Pants wasn’t exactly growing on her.

After a thankfully short journey they arrived at the airport. Having quickly unloaded the cases they were pointed to a check-in desk by agent Grumpy Pants before he sped off. 

“I don’t think he liked us.”

“Well someone had to be immune to your charm at some point.”

“Hey. Hang on Robot does that mean you’re not?”

“That’s… not… I didn’t say that!”

“Haha. You like me. You really, really like me!”

“Come on. Let’s go and check-in and find out where we’re going.”

“Don’t think that is the end of this conversation Mister. You’ve said it, you can’t take it back now.”

“I said no such thing.”

Skye laughed as he became more and more flustered. He was adorable when he was like this. He was adorable most of the time actually. Gathering the kids they she headed toward the check-in with Ward bringing up the rear with the cases.

“Lanzarote. Where’s that?” She questioned, reading the sign above the desk.

“Spanish Island. Near the coast of Africa.”

“So hot. Great.”

“I thought you’d be happy with sun? Could have been Iceland and cold.”

“Kids and hot temperatures?”

“Fair point. Oh Hi. We were told to pick up are tickets here?” Ward explained smiling at the lady on the desk. 

It shouldn’t have annoyed her the way she simpered at Ward but it did. But it at least meant that they got done quickly, the kids were quickly become bored standing in the queue. Naturally they were all now hungry and needing the toilet. Once that had been dealt with they still had another hour to pass before boarding their flight. The girls were interested in some of the shops so Skye took them to look around them while Ward took the boys to look at the planes through the windows. Phil was quiet happy to just watch the planes taking off and landing where as Leo wanted to know exactly how they worked. Ward could answer some of his questions as being trained as a pilot had given him some knowledge. 

“Maybe I could ask the pilot when we get on?” Leo commented after Ward couldn’t give him an answer to one question.

“I think he might be a bit busy mate but maybe you will be able to.”

*******************************

Leo was disappointed. He had expected to be able to see the pilot but he was locked away. Daddy said he was busy flying the plane but for some reason he expected to be able to see him. But it was so good. You could feel the plane reacting to the pilot; take off was his favourite part so far. You could feel the engines working. Now it was just boring. You couldn’t hear or see anything.

Daddy had suggested he play a game and had passed him a jigsaw. Jemma hadn’t wanted to play with him. She was sitting on Daddy’s knee looking out of the window and talking to him about clouds. Mel was sat on the other side of the plane with Mummy and Phil. It wasn’t possible to play with them as people kept walking up and down the plane. 

His jigsaw was good though. It was 3D and was going to be a plane. It didn’t have working parts but it looked cool. Mum had been worried it would be too difficult but Dad had said he was clever enough for it. It would have been easy if it weren’t for the plane bouncing up and down. 

One time it even bounced it off his table and down onto the floor. Putting up the table he unclicked his seatbelt to get it.

“Leo?”

“Just picking it up Daddy. It fell on the floor.”

“Ok but be careful.”  
He had built the body of the plane but it was now in pieces over the floor. He had managed to find most of it with some of it being beside Dad’s feet but one piece was still missing. Where had it gone?

There it was! He spotted it down beside Mel’s feet. Crawling across the floor he quickly retrieved it. There was suddenly a lot of shouting and a crash from around him. Looking up he found a lady staring down at him and Daddy was looking annoyed.

“Oops.”

****************************

Ward relaxed slightly when they got sat on the plane. They both had two kids and were sat across from each other, which made things easier. He would be glad when the flight was over. At least once they were at the resort the kids would be able to move, instead of cooped up. He hated flying like this; he barely had room for his legs. However, the kids seemed happy enough, Leo was building his plane and Jemma was sat on his lap telling him all about clouds. She was fascinated by them; happy even though they could see nothing else. He leant and pressed a gentle kiss against her hair as she talked to him. It just felt natural. 

Naturally just as he was feeling peaceful everything went wrong. He wasn’t sure exactly what happened in the beginning. Leo had lost parts of his plane so had gone looking for it. After telling him to be careful, he had turned back to Jemma. Out of the corner of his eye he could see the airhostess approaching with her trolley. He was about to ask Skye and the children if they wanted a drink when it happened. 

The airhostess walking backwards suddenly went flying, tripping of Leo he later guessed. This started a chain reaction. As she fell she knocked another passenger and sent her drink flying off her tray and onto another passenger. The airhostess had stood up and was now glaring at Leo. 

He looked at Skye for help for a second before jumping into action. Scoping up Jemma he deposited her back in his seat before grabbing Leo and putting him down beside her. Apologising to the airhostess, he went to check on the passenger who had been covered in the drink. Thankfully they saw the funny side of it and weren’t too angry. 

Heading back to his seat he overheard the man sitting behind him.

“See this is what happens when you have too many kids. People need to learn to use protection.”

“Have you maybe thought we wanted a large family?” He retorted angrily.

“You maybe wanted to do a paternity test. Most of them look nothing like you.”

“We adopted!” He snapped before sitting back in his seat.

How dare he say things like that? He couldn’t wait for this flight to be over. It was already living up to his expectations.

*****************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the plane journey hasn’t gone well. The stuff about the 7 hour delay is true though as it was what happened to me on our flight back from holiday. If there is anything you want them to do while on holiday let me know.


	15. Chapter 15

Thankfully after the eventful flight everything else went smoothly. It was relatively simple to collect their luggage and get a taxi to their hotel. It was one of the largest in the resort with plenty of room for him and Skye as well as the kids. They’d been given a suite with bedrooms for Mel, Jemma and Leo. As Phil was still fairly young he’d been given a bed in their room. Having quickly checked out the room they bundled the kids up and headed out for some food. They didn’t want to have a late night as it had been a long day plus they still needed to contact Fury to inform him of their arrival.

 

Wandering down the main street of the resort Skye quickly spotted a small bar that looked family friendly called the HotSpot. Having ordered juice for the children and a beer for both of them Ward watched as Skye quickly logged her tablet online and sent a message to Fury. She’d be glad of the Internet, she was lost without being able to surf the web. They were unable to use phones at the moment in case they were traced. Skye had offered to have an untraceable, unhackable phone but Fury hadn’t wanted to risk it.

 

“So what do you want to do tomorrow? Beach or the pool?” Skye asked finally finishing up on her tablet.

 

Bouncing Phil on his knee while watching the older three attempt to play pool he considered it.

 

“How about we do both? We can do the beach in the morning. When it gets too hot we can come in for a lunch and a siesta. Then we can spend the afternoon by the pool. That way we can find what they like and don’t like.”

 

“Sounds good.”

 

“You’re just looking forward to the siesta.” He joked as he stood up and grabbed the pool cue before Jemma could take out a passing walker with it.

 

“We’ll I do like my sleep.”

 

“I’ve noticed!”

 

“Hey we’re not all like you Robot. Just because you run off batteries doesn’t mean we all do.”

 

“Jemma be careful. Serious will you ever get fed up of calling me a Robot?”

 

“ Will it ever stop annoying you?”

 

“Probably not.”

 

“Well then no. Leo please watch what you’re doing. Mel doesn’t want the cue up her nose.”

 

Ward eventually intervened when Leo managed to take out both Jemma and Mel with the cue. Deciding it was time to move on he paid for their drinks and they headed off to find food. They didn’t go far as it was very clear that the kids were tired. Having eaten while waiting for him and Skye to finish all of the kids had fallen asleep.

 

Placing Phil in his pushchair, Ward passed Jemma to Skye to carry while he picked up both Mel and Leo. Thankfully it wasn’t far to go. Having changed all of the kids without them waking and put them to bed they both considered having another drink. That was put on hold however, as when they both sat down on the bed for a few second rest they both fell asleep. Neither of them woke till next morning when Leo jumped on them, excited for the beach.

 

Having eventually gotten everyone to eat their breakfast by resorting to threats of not going anywhere it was then time for the part Ward was dreading. The sun cream. Getting any of them to stand still for two seconds was a problem so he wasn’t sure how he was going to manage to get them fully creamed. Thankfully they would only have to do it once a day as Skye had found a type of cream that was waterproof but only needed one application a day. The task was actually easier than he expected as they actually stood still once it had been explained what was happening. The only issue was with Mel and cream being put on her face. That was resolved when they found she would put it on herself.

 

With the kids sorted it was now his turn. Changing into the swimming trunks Skye had packed for him he made quick work of covering himself in cream, leaving only his back left to do.

 

“Grant can you do my back?” Skye called as she came back into the main room.

 

For a second all he could do was stare. She was wearing a simple blue bikini that emphasised all her curves. Blinking he nodded like an idiot, sure he couldn’t respond with words. Hands trembling slightly he covered her back in cream, trying not to visibly gulp when she undid the strap of her top so he could ensure that her whole back was covered.

 

“Thanks. You were incredible gentle. Robot’s a softie really. Do you need doing?”

 

He nodded again, his mouth having suddenly become extremely dry preventing speech. Her hand made quick work of his back, even though he had to stoop so she could reach the top. Once she’d done she gave him a quick once over.

 

“I have to say the glasses didn’t do you justice.” She muttered clearly not expecting him to be able to hear her.

 

“Glasses?” His voice increasing in octave without him meaning to. Damn he didn’t mean to show how interest he was but had she been checking him out?

 

“Oh the glasses on the bus. Fitz wanted to win a game of poker. I accidently caught a glimpse of you with them on. Now she we go kids.”

 

She had checked him out! He grinned after her retreating back before slowly picking up their beach bag and following her out of the room.

 

**************************************

 

 There was no worry about being overcrowded on the beach with sand stretching for miles. The sand was golden, which they hadn’t expected while they were on a volcanic island. Phil was entranced by the waves and was half way down the beach before either of them could stop him. Chasing after him Skye wasn’t quiet quick enough to stop him before he ended up in the water. Sighing she picked him up and carried him back to the others. Removing his shirt and top she handed him over to Ward who was going down to the shore with him, Leo and Mel.

 

Jemma lay out beside her on a towel reading a horrible science book they had brought for her. Skye watched the others with amusement as she lay listening to music. Ward was sat at the shoreline, his back to the ocean to protect Phil from the waves while he sat playing with the sand and laughing as water flooded around him. Mel was just in front of them doing handstands and cartwheels while Ward explained how she could stay up for longer. Leo was sat just above them, between Ward and Skye, seemingly attempting to construct the largest sandcastle known to man. He was muttering about structural support with the occasional input from Jemma.

 

After an hour Skye insisted that they all come and sit in the shade she’d created by putting up an umbrella. Leo didn’t want to leave him unfinished construction so they compromised by adding a hat. Jemma bored of her book started looking for stones to complete Leo’s sandcastle. Phil was using Ward as climbing frame as he lay on a towel. Mel was playing games on Skye’s iPod while Skye sat with Leo and helped by fetching water for him.

 

“Mum.” Leo moaned as he put the finishing touches to his sandcastles.

 

“Yes sweetie?” She replied as she dug in her bag searching for her camera.

 

“I’m hungry.”

 

“Ok. We’ll head back in a minute. Now do you want to stand by your sandcastle so I can get a picture?”

 

“Can we show it Uncle Tony when we get back?”

 

“Sure.”

 

Skye quickly snapped a couple of pictures including some showing the size of the sandcastle. It was pretty impressive; it was clear why he’d become an engineer. When the team got back to normal it was something she could show them with pride.

 

“Ok. Leo do you want to go find Jemma and tell your dad we’re going.”

 

She watched as he ran up to Jemma and began dragging her back over to the others, it wasn’t exactly what she’d had in mind. Nor had she planned for Leo to jump on Ward nearly sending Phil flying. Oh well. It took them only a few minutes to pack up with Mel and Jemma helping by folding towels. Leo looked slightly unhappy to be leaving the beach but hunger was clearly winning out. They had a slow walk back to the hotel and headed into the restaurant, leaving a trail of sand behind them.

 

***************************************

Mel watched as Jemma and Leo played in the pool. They were chasing each other up and down while she sat on the edge of the pool. It looked like fun. Her baby brother was laughing in his ring giggling as Mum pulled him up and down the pool.

 

“Mel come play.” Leo yelled from the other end of the pool.

 

“Yeah Mel. We need to drown Leo.” Grinned Jemma.

 

“Hey!”

 

As she watched Jemma ducked under the water and pulled Leo’s feet so he slid under the water. Mel wished she could join them but she was happy just sitting on the side.

 

“Mel are you alright?” Dad was bobbing up and down just in front of her.

 

“Fine.” She muttered looking away from him.

 

“Are you sure you don’t want to get in?”

 

She nodded refusing to look at him.

 

“What is it?” He questioned moving so he was sitting beside her.

 

“I…I…I can’t swim.” She stammered refusing to look at him. She didn’t want to tell the others in case they made fun of her.

 

“That’s fine. I can teach you if you want. Or mum can.”

 

“Really?”

 

“Yes. If you want to learn.”

 

She couldn’t help but grin at him. She just wanted to be like the other kids.

 

“Do you see how mum moves her arms and legs? Can you copy that?”

 

She nodded in reply. She watched as Dad slipped into the water in front of her then held out his hands. The water was cool and refreshing. She tried not to panic too much when she found her feet couldn’t touch the floor. Dad kept his arms around her, adjusting her till she was almost lying in the water.

 

“Ok now move your arms and feet like you saw mum do. Don’t worry I got you.”

 

She tried moving her arms and feet finding it awkward at first. After a couple of attempts she quickly found her rhythm. Moving slowly she quickly realised that the movement were a bit like when she’d learned kickboxing. Your muscles quickly remembered what you were doing.

 

“Keeping going.” Dad was still beside her.

 

“It’s not really swimming if you’re holding me though is it?”

 

“Mel I let go a few minutes ago.” He laughed.

 

It was at that point she sunk, leading to dad pulling her up and sitting her on his hip.

 

“Ok. Let’s try that again but try not stop in the deep end this time.”

 

*********************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok so the places I name are real in Lanzarote in a resort called Puerto del Carmen. Thank you to FaithfulBeliever who asked for Skye in a bikini and thank you to everyone who reviews.


	16. Chapter 16

“You want to do what?”

 

She never expected to end up the tough parent, but apparently Agent Grant Ward who could kill people at a thousand paces was a great big softie when it came to kids. Yes it was cute but at time like this it was extremely annoying.

 

“Go on a trip.” He replied his tone reasonable. “It will be good for the kids.”

 

“You just want to go and visit the volcano.” She snapped exasperated.  He was such a big kid right now.

 

“Skye. It will be good for the kids. Plus I thought you’d like it. You’re always saying how much you want to visit the world and see new things. Isn’t this a great opportunity for that?”

 

Sighing she knew she was going to give in. The fact he’d taken time to listen to her was enough to sway her even if his argument hadn’t been a good one. Plus it would be a good opportunity to get away from the beach and pool. As much as she loved them several days doing nothing else was beginning to get boring. Plus if she was beginning to get bored so would the kids. They had no idea how long they were going to be here for, Fury still hadn’t told them, so they might as well take the opportunity while they had it. Plus a volcano sounded pretty interesting.

 

“No coaches! I’m not taking the kids on a coach.” She sighed.

 

“Of course not.” He sounded offended she’d even thought that. “ I’ve hired a car for us.”

 

“So you’ve gone ahead and arranged everything. Why are we even having this conversation then?”

 

“Because we didn’t have to go. Plus there is a large supermarket and I thought we could do with picking up a few supplies.”

 

He could say that again. In the time they had been here they’d gone through nearly all of the baby wipes and snacks they’d brought with them. They definitely needed a shopping trip.

 

“Alright. But you get to explain to Fury if one of them sets off the volcano.”

 

“The volcano is dormant Skye, its unlikely to erupt.”

 

“Sure but you’re forgetting who we have with us. If anyone can cause a dormant volcano to become active its one of those four.”

 

“Good point.”

 

Rolling her eyes at him she headed to find the children and get them ready for the trip. She knew they would be excited, they liked doing new things.

 

“So guys who wants to go on a trip?” She asked standing in front of the TV to get their attention.

 

“Trip!” Phil cried bouncing up and down nearly falling off the sofa. It was only Mel’s quick invention that prevented him falling onto the tiled floor. Having righted Phil Mel asked:

 

“Where?”

 

“It’s a surprise.”

 

“I like surprises.” Announced Jemma.

 

“Right. Do you guys want to get ready then? Go and clean your teeth.”

 

Jemma grabbed Leo’s hand and they raced off towards the bathroom, clearly excited for the day. Mel seemed less happy.

 

“What’s up Mel?”

 

“I wanted to continue swimming. I can… I nearly can…”

 

Understanding why she was upset Skye pulled her into a hug. She’d seen how much the swimming lessons had meant to Mel.

 

“You won’t forget anything if you don’t swim for a couple of days.” She assured the young girl in her arms. “Besides we’ll probably end up swimming when we get back anyway to cool off.”

 

The answering grin she got made everything seem all right. Dancing off towards the bathroom Skye watched as she began chattering with the duo. The smile still caught her off guard. May never smiled as an adult but as a child although she was serious she frequently grinned. It just brought home how much the elder agent must have suffered to turn her from this smiling angel to someone who tried to hide all emotions. There were times when Skye really hated Shield.

 

Skye watched as Ward walked into the room, worry etched all over his face. He was another one that Shield had almost screwed up. Though to be fair it wasn’t just them, his family and Garrett had a lot to answer for. She was glad she’d seen him with the children though, it brought out a caring side she was certain he didn’t know he had. It was a beautiful thing to watch.

 

“You ok?” Concern lacing her voice.

 

Picking up Phil, as it was his turn to change him he nodded before moving beside her. Bending slightly so he could whisper to her:

 

“The kids are planning something. We’re going to have to watch them like a hawk.”

 

Great! That’s all she needed. Mischievous kids and a volcano.  She knew they’d been too good for too long.

 

****************************************************

 

The car journey wasn’t as bad as Skye expected. The kids were well behaved even though they were clearly excited. They kept pointing out things that they found interesting, camels were one of their favourites. She’d taken control of the music so she wasn’t bored by whatever Ward had deemed appropriate driving music.

 

Just over an hour later they were nearly there having entered the Parque National de Timanfaya denoted by a strange statue. It was almost like the devil she guessed.

 

“It’s a Manrique art.” Ward commented, noticing her staring.

 

“Huh?”

 

“Manrique is a famous artist from the Island. It’s his art. After the volcanic eruption the people believed it was the work of a demon or the devil. The devil became the emblem of the island and it is used to show the boundaries of the park.”

 

“Is it all volcanic?”

 

“No. It’s just the lava field. The park is just the area that’s protected. I think it’s named after the volcano which is also called Timanfaya.”

 

Apparently Ward was into this thing, which she hadn’t known. But then you learn something new everyday. She had to admit it was interesting. She couldn’t help but cringe on the route up to the top of the volcano. She trusted his driving but she still hated twisty turny roads.

 

Parking and releasing the kids from the car Skye watched as their faces lit up as they looked around and took everything in. As a group they decided to go on the bus tour first before looking at the rest of the volcano.

 

The lava fields entranced the kids with Jemma and Leo oohing at every turn. Mel sat with Phil pointing out different patterns in the lava, leaning up in amazement as they passed underneath an archway made of lava. Skye sat next to Ward keeping a close eye on the kids and listened to the audio commentary.

 

“This lava field was created in 1730 to 1736 when the volcano erupted. The volcano was created from a hotspot beneath the surface, which is still active today. This can be seen back at the top of the volcano where it is possible for cooking to be done over the top of the volcano. No eruption has occurred since then leading to the volcano being designated as dormant. However, as the heat shows it is possible that one-day the volcano may erupt again, though it is believed the magma chamber is empty.”

 

Wow. Ok. Ward was right it was worth visiting here. Not that she was going to tell him. This place was fascinating and the kids clearly loved it.

 

Having finished the bus tour Jemma dragged them all over to one side where the demonstrations were on going. Since she’d heard about the steam demonstration on the lava field tour she’d been insisting on watching it. Positioning Leo and Jemma within grabbing reach in front of her she moved slightly so she could also watch the demonstration. Ward lifted Mel whose view was blocked onto his shoulders so she could see better while Skye kept a hold of a struggling Phil. He wanted to get down and walk but there were too many people here to safely let him walk around. She didn’t want to loose any of the kids here; they’d never find them again.

 

They watched as a tour guide poured something on the ground beside them to show that the bottle he held was simply water. He then poured most of it down a hole beside him before stepping back quickly. There was a whoosh as a jet of stream burst upwards from the hole.

 

“Oooh Cool.” Phil squeaked waving his arms about.

 

Skye laughed and kissed him on the cheek. For the next demonstration the guide moved over to a different hole. Warning them not to attempt this themselves he put a bunch of straw over the hole. She wasn’t sure what was supposed to happen when it suddenly caught fire.

 

“Ok that’s cool.” Murmured Skye.

 

After the demonstration Ward turned to her.

 

“So? A good idea?”

 

“Ok Tin man. You got this one right. Its amazing.”

 

“Thought you’d like it.” He replied slightly smugly. “Anyway I haven’t finished yet. I thought we’d take a camel ride.”

 

“Camel!” Cried Phil, listening to them.

 

“I think that means yes.” Laughed Skye.

 

“Where are Leo and Jemma? I thought they’d be dragging us to go see the camels as soon as they’d heard.”

 

Looking around Skye saw they weren’t standing next to her where she’d seen them just a minute before.

 

“Damn.”

 

Just as she was about to panic she could hear the guide from earlier clearly telling someone off. From what she could tell they’d nearly set something on fire. Glancing at Ward, they both knew that sounded exactly like some people they knew, she handed Phil to him before striding off in the direction of the voice.

 

Standing there as she’d expected were Leo and Jemma trying to reason with a very angry guide. Apologising quickly to the guide she grabbed Leo and Jemma one under each arm and headed towards the car. Ward had anticipated her actions and already had Mel and Phil strapped in.

 

“We’re sorry mum. But we wanted to test a theory.”

 

“Jemma had an idea but we didn’t know if it would work unless we tried it.”

 

Skye looked at them helplessly before shutting the door to the car. Turning and finding Ward stood in front of her she moved and pressed her head against his chest.

 

“These kids are going to be the death of me. Seriously! I love them but god help us.”

 

Chuckling slightly he placed his arms around her and she was certain she felt him kiss the top of her head.

 

“You’ll miss them when they are adults again.” He predicted.

 

****************************************

 

The camel rides went down with the kids as well as he’d expected. Skye had already decided there was no point in punishing Leo and Jemma, something he agreed with. He’d meant what he’d said to her about missing the kids when they were back to adults. He loved the team but as children they were adorable. It was nice to be able to do something simple for once, even if looking after the kids hadn’t been as simple as he’d first thought. It had shown him a side he didn’t think he had. Maybe there was more to him than simply being a weapon.

 

Pulling up at the camel ride place the kids piled out of the car before he’d even got his belt off.

 

“I think they’re excited.” Skye commented dryly as she hurried after them.

 

After a quick discussion on how to get everyone a ride they got onto the camels. They were riding in bucket like seats with one either side of the camel’s back. Leo and Mel were in front with Skye and Jemma behind him. He had Phil strapped to his chest and he rode with a guy from another group. Phil kept throwing his arms around and hitting him in the face he was so excited. It was cute but he could do without the continual smacks. If Phil kept going he was going to end up with a broken nose.

 

Half an hour later they had finished the ride and the kids were swapping stories as they got back into the car.

 

“They are good but monkeys are still better.” Leo announced. “Mum can I have a monkey?”

 

“What? No.”

 

“But muuuuuuummmmmmmm.”

 

“Leo if your mum says no she means it. Plus they don’t make good pets.” He interjected trying to cut of the moaning.

 

“But they can do all sorts of amazing things…”

 

Ward blanked out the following rambling about monkeys. He heard it all before from the adult Fitz.

 

“Somethings never change.” He muttered catching Skye’s eye and grinning as Leo continued in the background.

 

****************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So everything at the Park is real as is the information in the story. I’m sorry about all the geographical information. Once a geography student always a geography student. Hope you liked this. Next a meeting and fun times in a restaurant.


	17. Chapter 17

Upon entering the room instinct told him something was wrong. It wasn’t anything definite but something was out of place. Scanning the room everything seemed as he’d left it, clothes thrown off the sofa, stray toys lying on the floor. Nothing seemed out of place but his instincts were screaming at him that something was wrong. He’d learnt the hard way not to ignore them. Moving back outside the room he signalled Skye hoping she would understand. After a slight nod at him she turned to the kids.

“I’m thirsty. Shall we go and get a drink downstairs? We’ll leave Dad with the bags and he can join us when he’s put them away.”

The kids called their agreement, following her back towards the elevator. He nodded in reassurance when she looked back. It didn’t appear that the kids had noticed any of their tension, which was exactly what he wanted. He didn’t want them upset plus this way it wouldn’t alert anyone in the rooms.

 

After the elevator doors closed on Skye, he bent and rummaged in his bag. Taking a deep breath he tried to erase the last image of her surrounded by jumping children, biting down on her bottom lip, her eyes never leaving his. He couldn’t think of her right now or the children. He had a job to do. Pulling out the gun he kept with him at all times he straightened and moved into their rooms. Moving quickly but cautiously he cleared the rooms, his gun ready to fire at the first sign of danger. The kids’ rooms and the bathroom were clear, leaving only his and Skye’s room to check. Kicking the door open he moved swiftly into the room, pointing the gun at the occupant sitting on the bed.

“Nice welcome.”

“Fuck Tony! I could of shot you.” He glared at the man sat unconcerned on the bed before lowering the gun and putting the safety back on. After ensuring he had definitely put the safety on he tucked the gun into the back of his shorts. He didn’t have a proper holster so it would have to do.

“I’m sure Fury would have thanked you for that. He’s wanted to shoot me for years. Is it safe to have a gun around children?”

“It’s well hidden. Plus it’s needed in case we get unexpected visitors.”

“But they’re the best kind.”

“I take it you’re here for a reason? You know most people call ahead. It stops you having a gun trained on you.”

“I thought I’d surprise you. It gave me time to arrange some things.”

 

Ward didn’t like the glint in his eyes. It was never a good thing when Tony organised something. He had a bad feeling it had something to do with.

“Why are you here Tony?” While glaring at the man he retrieved his phone and texted Skye, telling her everything was fine. He could do without Tony causing chaos but as only Fury could have told him exactly where they were it had to be something important that had brought him here.

“Fury wanted a message getting to you. It’s too sensitive to be sent any other way. We’ve got a lead on what happened to your team. An assault team led by Agent Triplett is heading in tomorrow morning.”

“So we may get some answers?”

“I was told to stress it is a long shot but it’s the best lead we have.”

“Anything is better than nothing.”

“True. Anyway Fury thought you’d want to be back to get the results of the mission so he’s booked you on a flight leaving in two days.”

“Fine. What about the threat at home?” Ward tried to ignore the gleam in his eyes as he said home. He didn’t want to analysis his thoughts; he didn’t think he would like the way they were going. Denial was so much better.

“Gone. Some idiot hadn’t checked out a neighbour properly and they’d been confused with someone with the same name. Totally safe for you to return.”

“Good. Not that I haven’t enjoyed the holiday.”

“No. I’m sure its been great. Beautiful beaches, lying by the pool, stunning women in bikinis. Speaking of which where’s Skye?”

“Downstairs safe. I didn’t know you were in here.”

“Well you’d better get her up here. Otherwise you won’t have long to get ready.”

“Get ready?” He had a really bad feeling about this.

“Yes. This hotel has a fantastic babysitting service that I’ve arranged for you to use. You and Skye could do with a break and as I’m here I can keep an eye on the kids without actually being in the room. I’ve arranged you to have a lovely meal at a restaurant nearby and even brought you both some suitable clothing.” Standing Tony moved towards the door pointing at the clothes on the bed that so far Ward had ignored, as they didn’t pose any threat.

“So I’ll leave you both to get ready, the baby sitter will be here shortly. Enjoy the meal, Agent Ward, I told them it was a special night so they’ll pull out all the shots. I mean date night has to be special.”

 

What? Date night?

As the last part sunk into his brain Ward turned but Tony had already left the room.

“TONY!!” He bellowed, hearing Tony’s laughter as he shut the outer room door.

 

***********************************************

They’d eventually come upstairs and sat watching the TV while Mum and Dad talked. Dad seemed slightly upset but Mum was talking to him and seemed to be calming him down. She’d changed into a pretty purple dress that had left Dad with a slightly glazed look. As she moved beside them Mel muted the TV so they could all listen to her.

 

“Mum you look pretty!” Jemma gushed.

“Thank you baby. Now your Dad and I are going out and someone is going to be coming here to look after you while we’re gone. I want you to be good and do what they tell you to do. They will bring some food and are going to put you to bed. We’ll look in one you when we get back. Mel you’re in charge. I’m sure that everything will be fine but my number is over there if you need anything ok?”

Mel nodded feeling proud she’d been left in charge. She didn’t really want to be left with a stranger but it wouldn’t be for long. It would be just like Auntie Nat and Uncle Clint looking after them.

“Mum! Hug!” Phil cried.

Laughing Mum hugged and kissed all of them, as there was a knock at the door.

“Ok. This is Stacy. Be good and we’ll be back soon.” Dad bent and hugged them all as they glanced at the newcomer who was beaming at them.

“Dad.” She whispered as he hugged her good.

“Mel?”

“She’s creepy.”

“I’m sure it will be fine. You’ve got our number if you need anything.”

Mel nodded swallowing.

“Good girl. We’ll see you later.” He gave her another hug before standing and placing a hand on Mum’s back. Both of them turned and smiled at them as they left the room.

 

“Mum?” Phil looked at the door as if expecting it to open again.

“They’ll be back soon.” Mel reassured her brother, pulling him onto her lap. Wincing as he kicked her she tried to calm him down.

“I WANT MUMMY! MUMMY!! I WANT DADDY!! DADDY!!! DADDY!!!” He wailed trying to break her grip, tears streaming down his cheeks. No matter what she was doing he wouldn’t calm down.

“Mel. Why don’t you give him me? I’ll try and calm him down.” The creepy lady spoke, holding out her hands. Mel didn’t want to hand over her brother but he wasn’t calming down for her. His screaming got worse and worse with Stacy nearly dropping him as he tried to get to the door to look for their parents. Everything she did made it worse, with Leo eventually grabbing Phil from her arms and cuddling him in between him and Jemma. Mel moved so she was sat in front of him putting her hand on his leg so he knew she was there. Grabbing the remote she searched through the channels to try and find something that would distract him. Eventually she found Tangled, which he would like as he loved the horse Maximus.

 

Eventually Phil stopped crying and began using Leo as a pillow, refusing to let go of Jemma’s hand. He didn’t let go even when the food came meaning Jemma had to eat awkwardly using her left hand. Not that Jemma ate much. When Stacy asked her what was wrong she said she wasn’t feeling well. Suddenly she bolted off to the bathroom and slammed the door. Leo immediately jumped up and headed over to the bathroom, pleading through the door to be let in. Stacy was stood beside him trying to find away to get into the bathroom to check on her. Phil had realised he’d lost his safety blankets and was begin to cry again calling for Daddy. Mel slid to the floor trying to comfort him again, rocking with him on the floor. In her hurry to get to him she knocked over the juice bottle sending orange juice all over the table and dripping onto the carpet.

 

Jemma finally opened the bathroom door revealing her sitting on the floor looking slightly green. Checking her over Stacy persuaded her to sip some water saying it would make her feel better. Leo moved behind her stroking her hair and mumbling into her ear. Phil was now having a tantrum, rolling around on the floor covering himself in orange juice. Mel was kneeling beside him waving his favourite toy trying to distract him.

 

Having ensured Jemma was feeling better Stacy moved over to Phil, scooping him up into her arms.

“Go and play Mel. I’ll look after Phil. He’ll be fine with me.”

She knew Dad had told her Stacy would look after them but she still didn’t like her so watched as she changed Phil into his PJs and gave him a toy to cuddle. He held it in one hand, sucking the thumb of his other and as she watched his eyelids slowly drooped. Five minutes later he was asleep with his head on Stacy’s shoulder. Mel was reading a book while Jemma and Leo played beside the TV. Just as Stacy came from the bedroom having put Phil down in his bed there was a crash as the TV fell off its stand.

“Oops.” Leo and Jemma looked at each other in confusion while Mel just rolled her eyes. The noise clearly woke up Phil as crying came from the bedroom. With a sigh Stacy picked up the TV before heading into the bedroom to comfort Phil.

 

*************************************

“So Tony just organised all of this?” They were sat in this fancy restaurant with romantic candlelight enjoying a glass of red wine. It was the most relaxed she’d seen Ward for a while. He was looking particularly handsome in a cream linen shirt and blue trousers. Judging by the colour scheme he hadn’t picked his clothes, he tended to go for black and grey over anything colourful.

“Yeah. Right down to the clothing we’re both wearing.”

“Remind me to thank him later. It smells so good here and it’s nice to see you in something a bit colourful. This dress is beautiful.”

“I like plain colours. Anyway the dress is nice but it’s you that manage to make it look beautiful.”

She looked down blushing. She wasn’t entirely sure how to respond so she did what she always did when she was nervous, fall back on humour.

“Was that a complement?”

“A comment.”

“A nice one. Are you feeling alright Robot?” She watched with delight as the corners of his mouth turned up slowly, his gaze never leaving her. “A compliment and a smile.”

“Haven’t we had this conversation before?”

“You have an inability to admit you’ve given a compliment.”

“Before was just an observation. You do make it look beautiful. It was just a simple dress before you put it on. I saw it.”

“However you say it, it’s still a compliment.”

“Whatever you say Rookie.”

“I win. I win.”

 

He watched her celebrate, dancing in her chair with an indulgent smile on her face. She watched as he pulled her phone out of his pocket and check it before sliding it back.

“Am I boring you?” She teased before turning serious. “They’ll be fine Grant. If there is any trouble they’ll ring. Besides Tony said he would check on them.”

“I know I just don’t like leaving them on their own with a stranger.”

“I know the feeling. Tony will keep an eye on them.” She reached for his hand across the table and gave it a gentle squeeze. “You were right the other day you know. I will miss them when they are back as adults. Knowing that they may be back as adults soon just brought it all home.”

“I know. On the one hand I won’t have to worry about them but on the other I will miss taking care of them all the time. I guess the only conciliation we have as they’ve been happy as children.”

“That’s true. Plus we have some fantastic pictures to blackmail them with!”

 

She watched as he laughed, chasing away the sadness she could see in his eyes. Being with the children had helped him open up and allowed her to see inside his tough shell. He’d lowered the barriers and let her in, showing her emotions he normally kept hidden. It was something that she was thankful for. They moved onto lighter topics, laughing and joking while they had their meal. It didn’t escape her notice that he only let go of her hand so he could eat his main meal.

 

Having finished a fantastic steak, Skye was examining the pudding menu while he once again checked the phone. Finding it free from messages again he refocused on her laughing as she pulled faces trying to decide on a desert.

“Come on Mr Health fanatic have a desert with me.” She pulled her puppy dogface.

“I couldn’t eat one.”

“Come on it’s a special occasion. Forget healthy eating for one night.”

“Fine but only if I can share yours. I don’t think I could eat a whole desert.”

“Yes. I’m picking though!”

 

She waited until the waitress came over and pointed to what she wanted on the menu not wanting him to know what she was ordering or he’d change his mind. When the desert was placed in front of him we simply looked at her.

“Could you’ve picked a desert with more cream?”

“Oh I don’t know. I only went for one with a small amount.” She grinned back at him.

Sat in front of them was a mammoth portion of tiramisu with added cream. It looked absolutely decadent and something he would totally hate.

“You said you’d share.” She reminded him.

Rolling his eyes at her he picked up his spoon and dug in.

 

Having finished the desert, which even Ward couldn’t complain about and found that Tony had already paid the bill, they began slowly walking back towards the hotel. They both wanted to prolong the moment. Shivering slightly Skye ambled along beside Ward listening as he pointed out constellations in the sky. The dress was beautiful but it could do with either sleeves or a jacket. She saw Ward glance at her before putting his arm around her and pulling her into his side. He was like a radiator and it was all she could do to prevent herself snuggling in to him completely.

 

“I guess I’d better thank Tony when we get back. I’ve enjoyed tonight.” As he spoke she could feel the vibrations through his chest making her shiver slightly. Thankfully he clearly just put it down to cold and pulled her closer.

“Me too. Maybe we should spend some time like this again.” She suggested hesitantly.

“That sounds like a plan.” He agreed leaving her grinning like an idiot into his chest.

 

*********************************************

They’d finished their holiday off in style with the kids running riot and nearly destroying an entire restaurant. The flight back had been less eventful than the flight out. Now all they had to do was get the grumpy kids home and prepare for a debrief with Fury. He and Skye had already agreed not to mention the problems that occurred with the babysitter, which they’d found out when they’d got back, or what happened at the restaurant, though Skye had pictures saved for blackmail later.

 

He was just planning what they needed to do when they got back as they got to immigration. The agent looked bored, grabbing the passports and glancing at them in turn until his computer beeped. Reading the message he straightened before turning back to Ward.

 

“Excuse me sir. I need you to go down that corridor there.”

“Is there a problem officer?”

“No but someone is expecting you. The message says upon your arrival you are to report in at the room down the corridor.”

 

Thanking the man he collected the passports before striding down the corridor with Skye and the kids following him. As he glanced back Skye nodded at him readying herself for whatever was on the other side of the door. Entering the room Ward was taken aback to see Fury waiting for them.

 

“Sir?”

“Ah Agent Ward. Agent Skye.”

“Is everything OK?”

“Something has occurred which will affect you.”

“Is it something that happened on the mission?”

“Yes. We have a problem.”

**************************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has reviewed. Next time we’ll find out exactly what happened on the mission and what the problem is.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay, I got more distracted by Mario Kart than I expected. Italics indicate a flashback.
> 
> *****************************

Skye wandered around the house trying to get everything put back in its place. It was obvious that others had been in the house as nothing was where she’d left it. This on top of the holiday stuff that needed sorting meant she had a lot of work to do before she went to bed. Ward was in charge of putting all the kids to bed, which was probably the more difficult job, as they were all excited after today’s events. They had no concerns about what had happened; in fact they seemed over joyed by it. She and Ward on the other hand were still struggling to comprehend exactly what had happened. They’d just got used to their current life when it had been turned upside down yet again. Moving on autopilot she folded the clean clothes, thinking back to the airport.

 

_Fury seemed unable to explain further. Skye exchanged a glance with Ward, they’d been concerned by the appearance of the Director but now they were really worried. What was so bad that it would turn Fury speechless?_

_“Maybe it’s better if I show you?”_

_‘OK. What the hell?’ Skye wondered, feeling the blood pounding in her ears._

_She watched as he spoke to an agent at the door, moving to rest against a table. She had a feeling she might need holding up soon. Ward seemed to be trying to read Fury but from the frown on his face he wasn’t having much luck. The kids were sat on the floor leaning on one another and beginning to fall asleep. Normally she would object but if they were asleep it meant that they were less exposed to whatever craziness was going to walk through the door. She grabbed the table beneath her as she heard footsteps return. Two sets of footsteps, Ward’s training helped her distinguish. All she could do was blink as she watched the door open and one person stepped inside._

_“It’s about time. I thought you’d never get back.”_

“Hey.” Ward was stood in front of her breaking her thoughts.

“Hey. Everyone in bed?”

“Yep. Fitz hates his new room and wouldn’t let go of his monkey toy but otherwise everything was fine.”

“Has much changed? I can’t find anything down here.”

“Well our room is no longer where it used to be. That’s now the boys’ room plus a huge bathroom. The girls’ room is now combined with Leo’s room and includes a bathroom. Our room is in the new part and appears to have every tech gadget you can imagine plus a huge bathroom, including what I think is a Jacuzzi bath that could fit both of us at once!”

‘Sounds fun!’ She thought managing to catch herself before she spoke the words aloud.

“Well down here we now have a media room plus a kitchen that I’ll never be able to use!”

“When Shield does something they don’t do simple.”

“I highly doubt this is all down to Shield. This has something to do with Tony!” She grumbled.

“True. Though it probably is just as well. We definitely need the extra room.”

His words sent her thinking back to a few hours ago.

 

_“Tripp?” She squeaked, as he grinned at her from beside the door._

_“Finally you’re calling me that. I thought you’d always call me Antoine. Tripp is far cooler.”_

_Her eyes must be playing tricks on her. This couldn’t be Tripp._

_“Come on. It’s just a joke.” He continued frowning when he didn’t get a response from her. “It’s just a nickname Mum. Dad calls it me all the time. Don’t you Dad?” He turned to try and get a response from Ward who was looking at Tripp as if he’d grown another head._

_“Not another one!” He groaned, putting his head in his hands._

_She knew the feeling. Stood in front of them was definitely Antoine Triplett, well a younger version anyway. And he thought they were his parents._

_“Tripp why don’t you go and sit with your brothers?” She attempted._

_She really needed to talk with Ward and Fury without him grinning at her. Besides if they were his parents it made the rest of the kids his siblings._

_“Sure. Knew you’d need to talk to Grandpa. Besides they look like they need some fun and I bring the fun and noise wherever I go.”_

_Oh yeah. It was definitely Tripp._

_Once he’d move to sit by Jemma she turned back to Fury, Ward still had his head in his hands. Maybe he thought if he ignored it for long enough he would wake up and find it was all a dream._

_“We found him like that. He was separated during the mission. When we found him again he was like that. They brought him to me and he called me Grandpa. I then guessed what had happened so brought him here to meet you. Seems my guess was right.”_

_“How old is he?” The words came out slightly distorted, as Ward still wasn’t looking up._

_“According to the scientists about twelve-thirteen.”_

_“Oh great. A teenager!” Ward sighed and finally looked up. “Apart from Tripp did we find anything on the mission?”_

_“No.” The pursed lips the only sign of frustration from Fury._

_“Where are going to put him? We were struggling for room before.” She questioned speaking more to Ward than Fury. So she was surprised when the later spoke._

_“About that…”_

“I don’t know whether to thank Maria and Nat or kill them.” They’d been the ones who’d suggested the renovations to Fury, thinking that as the family were on holiday it was the perfect time to do it. Skye was impressed at how quick it had been done. They hadn’t been away three weeks. But Shield was quick to respond to most things, including building work apparently. It was just as well it had occurred, as with Tripp it would have been a tight fit. Plus it meant Phil could sleep in a room with boys instead of in their room. It just now meant that everything had changed. Not what you needed when you had a houseful of children who got bored easily.

“I know the feeling. I have to admit I do like the new bedroom.”

Now that wasn’t what she expected. He preferred simple things and he’d already said the room had a lot of gadgets.

‘What’s he up to?’ She wondered. His face was unreadable so she was going to have to watch him. Sometimes it was like having five kids. Six now she amended.

“Hey what’s up?” He must have caught some of her thoughts on her face.

“How are we going to explain Tripp? He hasn’t been here when we have!”

“We’ll he’s adopted.” She just gave him a look leaving him scrambling to answer her.

“He’s been off at some summer camp. We collected him and then went on holiday.”

“And the fact he’s not in any of the photos?”

“Couldn’t…. maybe… you could edit it him in? If we took some pictures now.” He offered looking hopeful. “You are fantastic with computers.”

“Flattery will get you anything.” She muttered dryly. “Anyway if I can’t I’m sure someone at Shield will be able to do it.”

“I’m not sure how I’ll cope with a teenager in the house. Little kids I can cope with but my teenage years were bad. I’m not sure how to react or what to expect.” He admitted.

Grasping his hand she gently squeezed it, knowing how hard it was for him to admit that to her. She knew about most of his childhood having hacked his files and court records after he admitted about his brother in the well. It had taken her a while to get to the truth as a lot of it had been concealed. What she’d found had sickened her. She wanted to pull him to her and never let him go, reassuring him that everything would be all right. She hadn’t as it would freak him out but she knew he didn’t need to be defined by his past. Nat wasn’t so neither should he.

“Just be like you are with the other kids. You’re a fantastic Dad Grant. The kids love you and Tripp will be exactly the same. Just expect more talking back and slamming of doors.”

He looked at her for a long time before raising the hand that was still clutching his and raising it to his lips. Pressing a gentle kiss again the back of her hand, he smiled as if the weight of the world had been lifted off his shoulders. It was absolutely stunning. Amazing what a few simple heartfelt words could do.

“Now I believe we deserve a glass of wine!”

“Sit. I’ll get it.”

She watched as he headed towards their new kitchen still beaming. They were going to be just fine.

 

**********************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Of course I wouldn’t kill Tripp! To answer stuartzomboy I’m thinking about bringing in bits of their backgrounds I just need to check what is cannon and what isn’t. If anyone has any suggestions of the background let me know.


	19. Chapter 19

Skye entered the house to yelling. She’d only been gone half an hour, thinking that leaving all the kids with Ward for that amount of time wouldn’t be a problem. She’d been wrong. It sounded like World War 3 had broken out. She’d nipped out to the shops to buy some personal things she didn’t think Ward would be comfortable buying. He’d said he would be fine minding the kids. Striding into the living room she found Leo and Mel sat playing computer games. A harassed Ward stood juggling Phil and food while trying to keep himself between Jemma and Tripp who were yelling at each other around Ward’s legs. Sighing Skye deposited her bags and went to help. The past week had been like this. Tripp’s arrival hadn’t gone down as well as they’d hoped. Mel had been happy; she finally had someone she could spar with as long as Ward watched. Leo had simply been glad for another boy, as Phil didn’t count, as he wasn’t old enough to play with yet. Jemma had been the one with the problem, she seemed to hate Tripp though couldn’t give anybody a reason why. It had led to them both being snippy and frequently fighting. She was getting fed up but still didn’t have a solution. 

Handing Skye Phil, who was watching the fight with avid interest, Ward placed the food down and grabbed both children. Bending down so he was on their level he spoke.  
“I’ve had enough of this fighting. Now what is this about?”  
Both children began speaking at the same time.  
“One at a time. Jemma?” He interjected.  
She stared at the floor refusing to speak.  
“OK. Jemma I want you to go to your room. I’ll come and speak to you in a minute. Tripp?”  
“I don’t know she just started yelling at me. Then I got annoyed so I yelled back. She’s being a baby.”  
“Tripp you need to keep your temper. I know you’re unhappy but you’re the oldest. She’s your sister. You don’t have to like it but you need to be nice to her.”  
“Sorry Dad.”  
“It’s not me you need to say sorry to. I want you to apologise to her when she comes back down.”  
“But Dad…” He wined.  
“No buts.” Ward stared him down until Tripp nodded sullenly.

“World War 3 averted?” Skye quipped as Ward moved towards her.  
“God I hope so! I don’t think I can deal with anymore fights.”  
“Maybe we should take them out? Being cooped up can’t help.”  
“I suppose. I’d better go talk to Jemma.”  
“I’ll go. You sort lunch. Try and think of somewhere where we can go while you’re at it.”  
He grinned at her before scooping up Phil and heading to the kitchen. She waited a few seconds savouring the view of her SO from the back before heading upstairs. She entered the girl’s room finding Jemma lying facedown on her bed.  
“What’s up Jemma?” She asked quietly sitting down on the bed beside her.  
“Nothing.”  
“Something must be up. You never fight. Why are you upset with Tripp?”  
“It’s not fair.” Jemma wailed, beginning to cry. Flinging her arms around Skye she began to cry into her shoulder.  
“What’s not fair?” Skye asked stroking the young girl’s hair gently.  
“He’s taking Leo away from me. Leo promised to play with the science set Uncle Bruce gave me. But now Tripp’s here he doesn’t want to play anymore.”  
“Sweetie I’m sure he does. Just ask him.”  
“I did! He said he wanted to play with Tripp.”  
“Why don’t you play with Tripp as well then? Maybe all three of you could use the science set?”  
“He wouldn’t want to.”  
“Have you asked him?”  
“No.”  
“Maybe ask him. I’m sure both Leo and Tripp would be happy to play if you asked them nicely.” Skye felt Jemma’s sobs subsiding and sighed slightly. Hopefully this would be the crisis adverted.

Ten minutes later, having dried Jemma’s tears they came downstairs to the smell of burgers. The rest of the kids were sat at the table about to tuck in to the food Ward had placed in front of them. Skye watched with pride as both Jemma and Tripp apologised to one another.  
“Everything alright?” Ward questioned handing her a burger. Examining it she saw he’d done it exactly how she liked it, with crispy bacon and a small amount of ketchup.  
“Yeah. Jemma was jealous of Tripp. Thought he was stealing Leo away from her. Hopefully its sorted now.” She informed him before taking a big bite of her burger, sauce dripping down the side of her mouth.  
“Oh God! This is amazing!” She moaned taking another big bite.  
Laughing Ward leaned forward and gently wiped away the sauce.  
“Dear God Ward. I could kiss you.” God that man could cook.  
“It’s that good?”  
“Oh yeah.”  
She watched him laugh as he took his own bite of burger.  
“It’s just food Skye.”  
“No it’s heaven.”  
Shaking his head he moved to wipe Phil’s face and hands before ketchup ended up around the house. While he was distracted she considered stealing the rest of his burger but saw that he’d put some in reserve on the counter. Just as well otherwise his was a goner. For someone who hated junk food he couldn’t half cook it.  
******************************************************  
They’d decided to take them to an indoor play park as it had begun to rain. Maybe if they used up some of there energy. It was a short drive and they divided up the kids between them. That hadn’t lasted long, as soon as the kids had seen the play park they’d gone running off. Skye looked after the bags and drinks while keeping an eye on Leo and Tripp who were playing on some swings. Mel and Jemma were playing tag, running around the cushioned play area. Jumping into ball pits and through rollers. They’d even managed to get some other kids involved in it and seemed to be having a fantastic time. 

Ward was with Phil as he was slightly too small to go and play on his own in the play area. She couldn’t help but laugh as Ward carried and climbed with him, having to contort himself to fit in the play area. Both were laughing as Ward went down the slide with Phil on his lap. Although the kids were happy, Skye couldn’t help but smile at Ward. He was clearly loving it as much, if not more than Phil. Using her phone she snapped a couple of pictures before sending them to Nat and Bruce. She knew it may have given them blackmail material but knew they would be happy to see the normally uptight agent enjoying himself. 

A short while later Jemma had become tired playing tag and had joined her Dad and Phil in the ball pit. They were both throwing balls at each other, giggling even though they both had terrible aim. Ward had a quick conversation with both of them before heading over to where she was sitting.  
“Ok their honey?” She grinned handing him a glass of coke. He was grinning like a little boy, which was totally adorable.  
“Phil was having a good time.”  
“Aha. Only Phil.”  
He looked at her questionably.  
“You’re grinning like an idiot sweetie.”  
Before he could argue back a voice shouted from the top of the play area.  
“I’m the king of the castle and you’re a dirty rascal!”  
“Of course it was Mel.” Ward muttered as they watched Leo and Tripp race through the obstacles to try and catch her.  
“I think it’s my turn to go in. If you try to get up there you’ll get stuck.”  
“I’m not fat!”  
“No but you’re over six foot, entering an area meant for under twelve’s. I don’t want to have to call Dad and explain that you’ve managed to get stuck.”

They’d agreed to call Fury Dad in public just in case anybody was listening. He nodded in agreement so she set off into the play area. She had to admit she knew why he had been grinning like an idiot. It was a lot of fun. It wasn’t as if she’d ever been in a place like this before. She could have sworn she saw a flash from where Ward was waiting but dismissed it. He wouldn’t dare take photos! A few minutes later she caught up with her children. A quick conversation later they’d got the message and agreed to be careful and not annoy other children. She was debating on how to get back down when she caught sight of the slide. It was the quickest way down. Nobody could argue with that. Checking to ensure there was no one nearby, she made her decision and threw herself down the slide. Giggling as she reached the bottom she looked up to see Ward beaming at her, his phone in his hand.  
“You didn’t!” She gasped. He’d better not have filmed her.  
“All’s fair in love and war! Nat is going to love this one!”


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OK so this chapter is for nathyfaith who suggested the part with Ward later in the chapter

When a phone call comes in at eight in the morning you know its not going to be good news. Especially when only a few people in the world have that phone number. Groaning Skye considered burying her head in the pillows and ignoring the world for a few more minutes. But deciding it was better to know what was going on she stumbled out of bed and downstairs to where Ward was talking on the phone. He seemed deep in conversation so she headed into the kitchen, pouring coffee for both of them. Ward had already set the coffeemaker, bless that man! She needed it to be able to understand what was happening and his frown suggested he would need it once the conversation was done. As it was too early for anything stronger coffee would have to do. There were a lot of sirs from Ward suggesting it was Fury on the phone. Watching from the kitchen she could see Ward arguing and decided she didn’t want to know right now. It must be something fairly bad to cause him to argue with his boss. It was normally prudent to agree with Fury. Knowing her little monsters would soon be up having heard the phone she began digging out cereal and bowls and began setting the table. By the time she’d set out glasses and poured everyone’s favourite juice (apple for Phil and Leo, orange for Mel and Tripp, pineapple for Jemma) Ward had finished his phone call.   
“Coffee.” Skye handed him the cup taking in his haggard expression.  
“You’re an angel!” He eagerly took the cup from her and downed it in one. Things were clearly worse than she imagined.  
“Grant?”  
Sighing he reached for the coffee pot, topping up both their cups before replying.  
“It was Fury. They’ve got a new lead. But they’ve no teams to go and investigate it. He’s going to send Clint, Steve and Thor to check it out.”  
“OK. But why were you arguing?”  
“Sending some of the avengers is fine. But they don’t know exactly what they were looking for. Ideally Fury would normally send our team but…”  
“They’re currently children so can’t help. So?”  
He looked at her, eyes begging her not to ask.  
“No! No you can’t go. No!”  
“Skye! I haven’t got a choice. I’m the only one who can do this. Besides Fury ordered me.”  
“No. You might end up like Tripp or worse! No!” She cried.   
Moving quickly as he saw her tears flow down her cheeks he pulled her into his arms, her head resting on his chest.   
“Hey. I’ll be careful. There’s no way I’ll let that happen to me. I won’t leave you alone.” He promised, kissing the top of her head.  
“You’d better not.” She pulled back, angrily dashing away her tears. “I’m coming with you.”  
“Skye you can’t.”  
“Why? Am I not good enough?”  
“That’s not it and you know it. Fury needs someone to stay behind to look after the children in case anything happens to me. There’s no one else who can do that. Besides this way I know you’re definitely safe. I don’t want anything to happen to you.” He gently wiped away her tears, looking directly into her eyes. She could doubt his sincerity. Flinging her arms around him again she absorbed his warmth and strength, hoping she could safe it up while he was gone. Eventually calming something came to her.  
“Hang on. I’m going to be on my own.”  
“Fury’s talking to Nat. She’ll come and help you out for a while. You know I wouldn’t let you deal with the kids all on your own.”  
“It’s all planned out.” She realised sadly.  
“Yes. Not matter how much arguing I did I couldn’t change that.”  
“When do you leave?”  
“Tomorrow.” Seeing her face he added. “The sooner I’m gone the sooner I’m back. Fury wanted me to leave today but I said no. I’d promised I’d stay with the girls.”  
“I bet that went down well.”  
“He wasn’t impressed but I threated to let the children call him and ask Grandpa why he was being so mean.”  
“You blackmailed your boss?”  
“Seemed like a good idea at the time.”  
The sounds of footsteps indicated that they weren’t going to be alone for long. She began to pull herself together not wanting the children to see her upset.   
“Are you going to be OK?” Ward whispered stroking her cheek.  
Nodding she leant up on her tiptoes and pressed a kiss to his cheek.   
“Mummy who was on the phone?” Mel demanded as she climbed onto her chair.  
“Grandpa. He has a task for your dad tomorrow.”  
“Is Grandpa coming?” Tripp asked as he grabbed a box of cereal.   
“I don’t think so but Auntie Nat is going to stay with us for a bit.”  
“Yay!” Jemma and Leo celebrated.  
“She can finally teach me how to throw knifes.” Mel announced.   
Skye glared at Ward wondering how he could leave her to deal with it.  
“I’ll make it up to you I promise.” He mouthed as he began feeding Phil is breakfast.  
“You’d better. You’d better.” She warned.  
*****************************  
Having tidied up and left Ward to deal with the girls, Skye and the boys had headed for the mall. With the addition of Tripp more clothes were needed plus all of the boys clothes were beginning to fall apart. Even though Mel was more active than Leo she managed to take better care of her clothes than him. Phil was simply growing and needed clothes in a bigger size. Normally they would refuse to go shopping with her but she’d promised them food and games. It was strange driving the car, she was so used to Ward driving. But it was no bigger than her van so it wasn’t a big deal. She was actually glad for the trip, it kept her mind off Ward’s mission. If not she’d just have been sat at home worrying.

Strapping a happy Phil into the pushchair before warning Leo and Tripp not to wander off. She’d already decided that she wanted to get all of the shopping done first before they went and had some fun. Heading into the large department store she headed for the children’s department. Handing Tripp a basket she quickly chose some tops for all the boys, knowing they wouldn’t want to try anything on. It was a miracle she’d got them to agree to shopping in the first place. Seeing a pair of adorable jeans she measured them up against Phil before throwing them in the basket. A short while later it was nearly off flowing with clothes as she picked up enough for all of the boys for a while. Picking up a package of underwear she examined them carefully.  
“Mum you can’t pick my underwear!” Tripp announced scandalised.   
“I’m your mother I can do what I want and you need new ones.”   
“Do you pick Dad’s?” He accused.  
Skye’s mind was suddenly filled with images of Ward in tight, white underwear. Trying not blush she turned back to Tripp.  
“Thank you for reminding me dear. Now pick between these two packs. They’re both cotton so they’re fine.”  
Ward was going to kill her if she bought him underwear but she had to say something to Tripp. Sullenly he picked a pair before putting them in the basket.   
“Right. Now you can help me pick some clothes for your Dad.” She was determined he would wear something other than white or black. 

A short while later the boys had picked several shirts and t-shirts of Ward, including a spectacular pink shirt that she was certain he might refuse to wear. Phil had chosen some novelty socks and ties for him with Leo selecting a number of weird fish shirts with various phrases on the back including Butch Bassidy and the Sundance Squid and Pac-Clam. It wasn’t what he’d normally wear but she could resist them. Plus they made her laugh. The salesman could quite believe the amount of clothing she had got, maybe she’d gone a bit over board. Having paid the enormous bill, they took the clothes back to the car after which she finally caved into Tripp’s moans and agreed they could do something fun now. Her only stipulation was that it was something they all could do, including Phil. They eventually settled on crazy golf. Although Phil was still a bit small for it with Skye’s help he should be able to at least attempt to hit the ball. Tripp and Leo were already arguing about who would get the best score. Leo was insisting that calculating the angles was the best approach while Tripp was adamant it was all about hand eye coordination. Skye really didn’t care; she just hit it and hoped for the best. 

Leaving the pushchair at the entrance Phil toddled around the course holding onto Skye, hitting balls along ramps and through slaloms with his own smaller golf club. She hovered behind him every time he hit the ball but he seemed to be doing fine, better than she was actually. Even a baby had better hand eye coordination than her. Somewhat surprisingly Leo and Tripp were level with one hole to play. There had already been accusations of cheating with balls being accidently kicked and distractions as the ball was about to be putted. Skye had become a referee, stopping the more outrageous attempts. Unbelievably it ended up a draw between the two with Phil coming next. It didn’t stop both boys arguing the merits of their methods.  
“Come on boys let’s go get food.” She knew that would distract them!  
**********************************  
Ward had left the girls to play for a bit while he packed. He didn’t want to leave them or Skye but Fury had been insistent. At least Skye would have Nat for support. He didn’t care that Fury was his boss; if it left Skye on her own he would never have agreed to go on the mission.  
“Daddy? Will you come and play tea parties with us?” Jemma stuck her head around the door.  
“Sure. I’ll be there in two minutes.” He quickly zipped up his bag before heading into the girls’ room. They’d chosen to play tea parties and he’d agreed, he would do anything to make them happy. Entering the room he saw Mel and Jemma sat on the floor with flower bands around their heads.   
“Here Dad.” Mel passed him a band of pink flowers.  
“You put it on your head Daddy.” Jemma giggled taking it from him. Sitting down beside them he bent at the waist so she could put it on his head.  
“It’s a flower crown. It makes us princesses.”  
“I’m a princess?”  
“No silly. You’re a prince.” Jemma giggled as Mel poked him.   
“Well your highnesses what would you like to do?”  
“Can we watch a movie later?” Asked Mel as she began to pour a small teapot. Ward could see it had been filled with water so that they actually had something to drink out of the cups.  
“Sure. We can even watch it in my room so we can all lie on the bed.” He picked up one of the small cups and gently knocked it against the girls’ cups. “Cheers.” He replied downing the water.

He sat and chatted with the girls listening as they told him storied about their toys and what games they’d been playing. They then decided they wanted to play dress up so he helped them on with their princess dresses and helped apply some makeup. Even though he was a prince he also had to have makeup so he lay on the floor to give them the opportunity to draw all over his face. When he got up later to make popcorn for the movie he found he had one purple eyelid and one pink, circles of red blusher along his cheeks and bright pink lipstick. He couldn’t help but laugh at his reflection. No one would recognise him as the specialist who had problems socialising with people. 

Snuggling up on the bed with a girl either side of him he looked at the movie they’d picked.   
“High School Musical?”  
“It’s got good songs.” Mel answered helping herself to popcorn. “We can sing along. Jemma can put the word up at the bottom.”  
*****************************************   
Skye arrived back finding the house relatively quiet. Having made the boys carry in the bags she let them go play games while she took the bags upstairs and found Ward and the girls. Putting away all the clothes apart from Ward’s she headed to her bedroom where she could hear noise. Opening the door a crack she could see both girls dressed up with makeup, lying on their fathers chest singing along to the songs of the movie. She instantly recognised it as High School Musical. Ward was also covered in makeup with a flower crown that just completed the picture. As he was too busy singing along to notice her she slipped away, leaving them to their bonding session. Heading back downstairs she grabbed her laptop and used her spare time to surf the Internet, something she’d done little off since the children arrived. 

A little while later noises in the kitchen signalled that the girls’ time had finished and Ward was preparing tea. After quickly checking the children were occupied she moved into the kitchen to see if he needed any help.  
“’We’re soaring, flying. There’s not a star in heaven that we can’t reach.” Ward sang as he stirred a pot on the stove.  
“If we’re trying so we’re breaking free.” She finished making him jump.  
“It really gets in your head doesn’t it?”  
“Yeah. Girls enjoyed it though.”  
“It looks like they weren’t the only ones!”  
*****************************************  
Tea had been simple and quiet, the kids picking up on the tension of the adults. Having eventually got them all to bed Ward grabbed his bag and headed out. Skye watched with trepidation. She really didn’t want him to leave. Nat was to arrive in the morning but it wasn’t the extra help she was worried about, it was loosing him. She stood at the door hesitating before running out onto the drive.  
“Grant!” She called before he reached the car waiting at the curb. Turning he dropped the bag he was holding. Before she lost her nerve she ran up to him throwing her arms around his neck. Pulling his face to hers she pressed her lips against his, her heart racing until she felt him respond. Pulling back so she could look into his eyes she ordered:  
“You’d better come back in one piece.”  
Turning and running back into the house so she didn’t have to see him leave she missed the delighted smile that passed over his face before he turned and entered the car.   
**************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is for everyone who asked if Skye and Ward were going to get together. Also Weird fish tops do exist and these are some of the things they have on them. Obviously I don’t own anything to do with High School Musical though I do love it. Next time we’ll see Nat enjoy time with the kids and what happens on Ward’s mission. Though I’m apologise for the delay in it, as it won’t go up next week as I’m away. But as soon as I’m back I’ll promise it will be up.


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok sorry for the delay in this chapter. I intended to write it as soon as I got back but I was dealing with sleep deprivation. Getting back home from a flight at two in the morning doesn’t really hell with writing. Anyway here you go.

The house was in chaos. She didn’t know why she’d agreed to this. She’d regretted it almost immediately. But when it’s raining and you have five hyperactive kids to entertain you don’t have a lot of choices. They could only play videogames so much and they did need to burn off some of their energy. It was for this reason that she’d agreed to allow a game of hide and seek. She had the feeling if it wasn’t for Nat helping them she would have found them all by now. Well Phil anyway. Trying to find a master spy wasn’t easy nor was finding ingenious children, who unfortunately apparently remembered some of their adult training. Sighing she headed back upstairs to continue the search up there. 

She was grateful to Nat for helping out but wished she wasn’t quite so mischievous; she’d already encouraged the kids to cause trouble. With Leo, Jemma and Phil it wasn’t as bad as they were all too young to be able to follow all of Nat’s instructions but Tripp and Mel just lapped it up. When she awoke this morning she’d found all the kids sitting on the table, on it not around it, while Nat threw them food that she was cooking. Skye still wasn’t sure how exactly she’d got in the house as Fury had implemented their security himself and refused to explain it to anyone else. Presents were scattered around the floor creating a minefield for Skye to cross before reaching the coffee pot. Next to it stood a large bottle of vodka.

“For us later.” Nat remarked as she threw another pancake to Tripp who caught it in his mouth.

So now she was faced with hyper kids and the prospect of getting extremely drunk later. Everyone knew the stories about Nat. Hell it was one of the unwritten rules of Shield not to drink with her unless you wanted a killer hangover and embarrassing stories that would entertain the new recruits. Moving as slightly as she could, cursing the creaking floorboards she snuck into the girls’ room, certain she’d heard giggling coming from in there. Pausing in the doorway the rocking of the wardrobe was clearly obvious. Easing up to the doors as silently as she could Skye flung them open and caught the body that tried to hurtle past her.

“Got you.”

“Mummy.” Jemma twisted from side to side but couldn’t escape Skye’s grip.

“One down another five to go.” She muttered as she threw the squirming little girl over her shoulder and strode off to continue her search.

 

Two hours later and everyone had been found. Leo had eventually given up, as he’d got hungry, allowing Skye to catch him raiding the cookie jar. Mel had hidden beneath the dinning table, clinging to the top whenever Skye looked underneath it. Phil and Tripp had nearly reduced her to gibbering mess when she’d found them hiding in the washing room. Tripp seemed unphased by her lecture that allowing his little brother to hide in the washing machine might not have been a good idea. Finding Nat was an unrealistic goal on her own but she wanted to win so she decided to try by hook or by crook. Bribing the kids to help the scoured the house but eventually had to admit defeat.

“Lunch?” Nat sauntered towards the kitchen having dropped down from the loft hatch that didn’t contain a ladder.

“How’d you get up there?”

“Planning. So lunch?”

***************************************

 Eight hours later and a frantic phone call to Bruce later all the children were in bed. Thankfully Bruce was happy to come out and treat the knife wound Mel had inflicted on Tripp. Skye hadn’t wanted to have to go to the hospital and explain that one. His sister was practising her aim by throwing knives at his head wouldn’t go down well. Nat had thought it was hilarious but had listen to Bruce’s lecture and agreed that maybe it hadn’t been a good idea. At least she might make them wear protective gear even if there was no chance of her not teaching them again. Skye was exhausted, the kids had been that much more hyper today. The only reason she hadn’t caught on to Nat’s training was she’d been dealing with a very weepy Leo who was missing Ward. She knew the feeling well. She’d only stopped herself hacking the mission feeds by the threat from Fury if she did it again he’d cut off their Internet supply. Her retaliation that it wouldn’t stop her was met with the chance of the entire block having no power. She couldn’t inflict that on her neighbours so had finally given in. She hated not knowing what was going on.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Nat clinked two shot glasses together as she carried in the vodka.

“Just wondering what’s happening on the mission.” Skye accepted the shot, downing it quickly and enjoying the burn down her throat. It reminded her of the scotch Ward poured the team after bad missions.

“He’ll be fine. The others will look after him.”

Ignoring the fact Nat had seen straight to what she was worrying about Skye poured another shot for them both and drank it as quickly as before. If Nat was going to continue with this conversation and take it where she thought it was going she’d prefer to be drunk.

“I know. He’s an agent, a robot with skills. But the kids are missing him already. I don’t want to have to explain to them if something happens to him.”

“Just the kids missing him?” The amused smile on her face made Skye wonder if she somehow had found out what happened last night. Kissing him in the street may not have been the best idea but she couldn’t help herself.

“Thank you for helping out, Nat. I couldn’t have done it without you.”

“Don’t think I missed that you didn’t answer me. I like the kids. It’s nice to just have some fun. Though I could have done without the lecture from Fury before coming here.”

Pausing before drinking Skye tried to puzzle out why Fury would lecture her.

“He’s always been close to Phil but I think he absolutely adores him as a baby. He slipped up and called him his grandson a couple of times so I’d expect another visit from him soon.” Grinning Nat knocked back another shot before topping up their glasses again.

“Fury has a heart?”

“Occasionally. You just have to dig deep to find it. Now do you want to play a game?”

“That sounds ominous.”

“Just a bit of fun. Helps get us drunk. You need to relax. When was the last time you had some girl company apart from Jemma and Mel?”

Blinking Skye considered that but drew a blank.

“I honestly can’t remember.”

“So let’s have some fun! Once the robot is back from the mission we can leave him to look after the kids for a while and go out. We’ll persuade Pepper, Maria and Jane to come as well.”

“I don’t know…”

“I’ll leave Clint to help look after the kids. It’ll be fun.”

“Fine! So what are we playing now?”

“I have never. We each say a statement and if you have done that thing you have to take a shot. It’s more fun if there are more of you but it can work with the two of us. Besides we can get to know each other a bit better. I’ll start. I have never kissed another agent.” With that she picked up her shot and downed it. “Oh you can lie but you have to take a shot if you do.”

Skye sighed and downed her shot. It was going to be one of those nights.

*************************************

 Ward had entered the Shield facility to find the rest of the team already prepared and waiting for him. As he’d met Steve before an introduction to him wasn’t needed, he knew Thor by reputation though they’d never actually met. Skye was going to kill him for preventing her meeting him. Clint grinned at him from the rafters where he sat watching all the comings and goings. As he’d already read the mission briefing on his drive all that was left to do was grabbing his equipment and sync coms. Clint was to provide air support and watch their backs while, Steve and Thor took point. Ward was to follow them and provide the link with the science team that were staying within the safety of the Shield facility.

“So everyone know what they are doing?” Steve examined the team as they prepared to head out. “No risks Agent Ward. Fury was very clear about bringing you back alive and as an adult.”

“I understand. I think we have more than enough children to deal with at the moment.”

“Children are delightful. On my world we encourage big families.”

“Yes but these kids still have some of the skills they had as adults Thor. They’re not exactly normal children by anyone’s description. Plus it’s a bit of a security risk.” He tried to explain.

“His world is different to mine, with so many rules. Who knows what is strange or not.”

Seeing the slight shaking of Steve’s head Ward decided not to delve further into Thor’s statement.

“Get Pepper to explain it to you later.” Piped up Clint, seeming determined to stir the pot.

“Lady Pepper is good explaining this world. I will do that.” Thor mussed.

“Tony’s going to kill you.” Muttered Steve before attaching his Shield to his back. “Let’s head out.”

 

The house they were entering had seemed innocent enough. Located on a quiet suburban street no one would expect it was a hive of illegal activity. Neighbours knew each other well, children played on the road. Everything was quiet and peaceful. Until Steve broke down the door anyway. Holding his shield in front of him he strode into the house as bullets flew towards him. Behind him Thor spun Mjolnir creating a breeze that knocked some of the assailants off their feet. Behind him Ward followed them in using his ICER to take out anyone who remained standing. Outside they could here cried as Clint picked off anybody who tried to flee. Plastic tents filled what would be the front room but as it wasn’t what they’d come for they ignored them heading further into the house. Thor moved to secure upstairs as Steve and Ward headed outside.

 

There they found another group of men who put up a bit more of a fight. Holstering his weapon as it would be no use to him in close quarter combat Ward prepared to take them out. They weren’t as skilled as he expected, especially if they had played a part in sneaking up on the team. They were fairly easy to defeat, even if they did manage to give him a few injuries. That was more due to shear numbers than any particular skill. It didn’t matter how skilled you were if there were more than you can handle you were going to get hurt.

“On your left!” Ward didn’t have time to examine where the voice came from as he dodged a hammer blow that would have stuck him on the head. As it was it caught his arm, sending pain radiating through his body. It didn’t feel broken but with the adrenaline pumping through his body it was hard to tell how serious his injuries were. Catching the second blow from the hammer he saw movement out of the corner of his eye, knowing there was no way he could prevent the blow that was coming. Before the blow hit him in the ribs the man suddenly soared upwards with a scream. Ward and hammer guy watched as the piece of fence panel fell from the sky, blinking up at the man who was carrying the attacker and depositing him atop a tall tree where he would cause no harm. Taking advantage of the distraction Ward kneed his attacker in the groin before wrenching the hammer from his grasp. A quick tap to the temple put him out of commission. Steve appeared to have the other attackers in hand, as soon as they recognised him the ones with more sense gave up, recognising a fight they couldn’t win.

 

Slightly bemused he watched as the flying guy landed and removed his protective goggles.

“What would you do without me?”

“Oh I’m sure we’d be fine.” Steve commented from where he was bent over examining one of the captives.

“Sure. Without me or Nat you’re hopeless.”

“We had everything under control Sam. Agent Ward this is Sam Wilson also known as the Falcon. Sam this is Agent Grant Ward of Shield.”

“Nice to meet you. I thought Shield was destroyed?”

“ We rebuilt it. Thanks for the assist.”

“Anytime. I heard a lot about you from Nat.”

“Oh?”

“We can talk about it later. How about we see if we can find what we came here for? And get you patched up, that cut looks nasty.”

“I’ve had worse.” He was used to ignoring injuries. He didn’t miss the piercing look Sam gave him.

‘How much does he know about me?’ He wondered as he followed Sam back into the house.

“Sam’s a therapist. He’s worked with Nat a bit.” Steve informed him as he got to the door, which explained the look.

 

Entering the house again they found Clint and Thor watching security footage with sombre faces. Grabbing a first aid kit Clint indicated for Ward to sit as he explained.

“Good news we’ve just taken out a gang. Bad news they’ve nothing to do with us. From what we can tell our suspects left about a week ago.”

“Damn it.” Ward snapped wishing he could punch something.

“We’ve got footage of them leaving so Tony can do something with it.” Clint offered as he pulled a needle and thread through a cut on Ward’s face.

“That’s something.” He sighed.

“So Sam how come you’re here?” Clint continued as he cut the thread.

“Nat thought you might need an extra hand so contacted me. Plus I think she wanted to make sure you were all ok.”

“We’re big boys.”

“Yeah that’s why you were out numbered and one of you is currently getting sown up.”

“Semantics! Anyway we can’t do anything more now. Shall we head out and leave these for the police to deal with? You need to have that arm checked over anyway.” He turned back to Ward.  “It might need to go in a sling.”

“Skye’s going to kill me.” Ward sighed, moving gingerly from his perch to the car.

***************************************

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As much as I would love to have changed the avengers to kids I think we’ve got enough to be going on with! There’ll be more of Skye and Nat’s drunken night later and more bonding with the kids. Plus Ward returns home.


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in this chapter, I moved back up to uni.

The next morning Skye’s head was banging. She knew she would regret those shots with Nat, hell she couldn’t even remember what she’d said for part of the night. She really hoped she hadn’t admitted how much she liked her SO. She’d already noticed Clint, Nat and she suspected Tony had been pushing them closer together. She didn’t want to encourage them; she knew it would make Ward uncomfortable. Rolling over slightly she found a warm body lying next to her. Raising her head slightly she peered under the covers, finding a very sleepy Leo lying cradling Ward’s pillow.  
“Hey sleepy.” Skye gently brushed his hair from his eyes, wondering how long he’d been in the bed with her. “You ok?”  
“Hey Mummy. I miss Daddy.”  
“That why you’re hugging his pillow?”  
“It smells like him.”  
“I know baby. Come here.” She lifted him and the pillow holding him close to her. “He’ll be back soon. Then you can cuddle him.”  
“Yay! Daddy smells nice.”  
“I know baby, I like it too.”  
There was something soothing about Ward’s smell. Working out with him she’d been in close contact with him frequently, allowing her to memorise his smell. It was now something she associated with home, comfort and safety. He would always look after her and protect her. She knew the kids would miss him but hadn’t counted on how much it would affect them. The appearance of Nat had been a good distraction but the kids were still very aware their ‘dad’ wasn’t here.

Lying for a little longer Skye eventually got up, lifting Leo onto her hip. He was getting a bit big for this but she wanted to keep him close for a little bit longer. Dressing him she headed downstairs finding a subdued bunch of kids sitting around the table.   
“What’s up guys?”  
“When’s Daddy back?” Jemma asked.  
“Daddy!” Phil wailed.  
Putting Leo down in Tripp’s lap, who immediately began cuddling the younger boy, she scooped up Phil rocking him to try and stop his crying.   
“He should be back soon guys.” Skye tried to comfort them.  
“Clint says they should be back soon.” Nat walked into the room examining her phone. “They need to make a stop somewhere first.”   
“You’ve heard from them?”  
“Just briefly. Just to say when they’ll be back.”  
“Yay!” Came voices from around the table. Leo, Jemma and Tripp began dancing around the table. Skye winced slightly at the noise level but didn’t object it was nice to see them happy. 

Having managed to calm the kids down to eat breakfast they asked what they wanted to do. They all wanted to make some gifts for when Ward got home. Tripp, Jemma and Leo were in charge of making a cake while Mel and Phil were making cards from them all. Tripp insisted that they didn’t need help but Skye insisted she deal with the oven, she didn’t want to deal with any burns. Mel insisted she was fine and would watch Phil with the glitter. As the kids were fine on their own for a bit, Skye and Nat retreated to the living room so as to avoid watching the mess unfold.   
“So it’s got to have been interesting suddenly having to look after loads of kids. How did you manage?”  
“With difficulty. Grant was actually brilliant with them, even though he was initially terrified. I just tried to treat them, as I wanted to be treated when I was a child. It seems to work. Plus Grant and I wanted them to have a good time, neither of us had great childhood so we wanted to ensure our teammates do.”  
She smiled remembering one night sat talking about it with Grant, cuddled up on the sofa. She’d eventually fallen asleep on him, waking when he gently lifted her. She’d pretended to be asleep, as he’d carried her back to their room gently pressing a kiss to her forehead as he placed her so carefully in the bed. It was the little things that he did that made her fall even harder for him. Smilingly she focused back on Nat, a knowing smile on her face.  
“What?”  
“You really don’t realise do you?”  
“What?!”  
“I noticed even more last night. You normally talk about him as ward, but as soon as you start talking about feelings he becomes Grant.”  
“Really?” She hadn’t noticed that. She knew in her mind she was beginning to use his first name but hadn’t realised she’d been doing it when speaking out loud.  
“Yeah. It’s really cute. You clearly care for him. It became very apparent last night.”  
Skye frowned slightly trying to remember what she’d said. She had a slight image of them laughing, discussing the boys and deciding who they thought was hotter out of various teammates. Every time Grant had come up she’d picked him. But hey her SO was hot!  
Cheeks burning slightly she replied;  
“Well he does look after me. Plus he is my SO.”  
Nat simply glared at her, seeing straight through her lie. A crash from the kitchen sent her scurrying that way, escaping what was about to become an awkward conversation. She wasn’t quite ready to talk about her feeling yet.

Entering the kitchen she coughed as she walked straight into a cloud of flour. Laughing slightly she took in the sight of the three of them covered from head to toe in flour and batter but looking very proudly at a filled baking tin.   
“You’re tidying this up later.” She warned as she placed the tin in the oven.   
Heading back into the living room she saw the table covered in glitter with Phil sucking on a felt tip. Sighing she carefully detached it from him, swapping it with a dummy. It looked like he had more glitter on him than the card he was making. Well at least that was the afternoon’s activities taken care of.  
**************************************  
Ward slipped back into the house, wincing as he shifted his shoulder. The medics had put it in a sling as a precaution. It had taken a little while to fix his cuts and bruise which was why he was no sneaking back into the house, trying not to wake any sleeping kids. Clint followed him; he’d driven him home after the others had left having seen him safely taken care of. There was still a light on in the living room and he wasn’t surprised to see Nat and Skye still up. He knew Clint had told Nat when they were getting back, though from the look on her face he hadn’t said why they were going to be so late. Striding towards them she gently took his face in her hand, examining his injuries before turning to Clint. Grabbing him by the ear she pulled him towards the stair scolding him as she went.  
“I told you to keep him out of trouble and safe. Not bring him back injured! I’m borrowing you’re room for a bit, I need to talk to my partner.” She glanced briefly at Skye before dragging a protesting Clint out with her.  
Skye waited until they were gone before taking his hand and leading him to the couch. Tugging him down she examined his injuries without comment though he could see the pinching of her eyebrows, a clear signal that she wasn’t happy.   
“I’m fine Skye. Just a few scratches.” As she looked pointedly at his shoulder he found himself rambling for some reason. “It’s just a strain and bruising. The medics were just being overly cautious.” He would have continued but she began gently running her hands across his temple, one of the few places that was only slightly injured. He felt himself relaxing, breathing in her smell, the fact that she was in front of him, healthy and hale. His tired muscles began to unknot, her touch better than any massage.   
“Are you alright?” She began gently running a hand through his hair.  
“I’m fine Skye. Are you and the kids?”  
“We’re fine. They missed you. Oh while I remember don’t go in the kitchen without them.”  
“Oh?”  
“They’ve made you some stuff but they want to be there when you open it.”  
“That’s very cute. I think that’s easy done. I just want to sleep.”  
“I think that can be arranged. We may get some visitors in the morning though. They really missed you.”  
“You keep saying they. Did you miss me?” It was extremely important to him. His tiredness had made him more blunt than usual.  
“Of course I did. It’s not as fun without you here.”  
His face fell slightly though he tried to keep a mask in face. Taking his face in her hands she pulled him so he was looking directly at her again.  
“Of course I did idiot.” She whispered, moving nearer to him. Deciding to take a risk, wanting her to know how he’d felt, as he hadn’t been able to show it before he’d left, he gently pressed him lips against hers.  
***********************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next time the kids see Ward has returned. There maybe a slight delay in it as I start lectures next week, have a fieldtrip and am going out for my birthday. But I should get a chapter up at some point!


	23. Chapter 23

For one of the first times in his life he woke slowly, in no rush to go anywhere. Not that he could move right now. Not without waking up Skye. He’d found since they’d begun sharing a bed she’d occasionally move during the night, laying her head on his chest. At first it had surprised him but now he was used to it. However, last night instead of just her head she’d moved so she was completely lying on top of him. It hadn’t bothered him as he slept on his back anyway and her weight was actually comforting. Glancing down he watched mesmerised as she breathed in and out. She seemed even younger in sleep, completely relaxed. It was a good sight. Shifting slightly against his pillow he wrapped his arms tighter around the hacker and closed his eyes again. Today was definitely a day for a lie in. 

He was startled awake a little while later by a sudden shriek from the doorway before a lightweight landed on his head.   
“Daddy!” Jemma squealed, slightly suffocating him as she tried to hug him. Lifting her carefully to ensure she hadn’t squished Skye he moved her so she could lie against his shoulder.  
“When did you get back?”  
“Last night.”  
“You didn’t come and see us.”  
“I was very late. I didn’t want to wake you.”  
“Did you miss us?”  
“Very much.”  
Footsteps came towards the door, and as Ward looked over he saw Mel and Leo holding hands with Tripp stood beside them holding Phil.  
“Jemma you yelled.” Leo complained clearly still sleepy. Rubbing his eyes he took in the figures in the bed before running forward.  
“Daddy!”  
Ward was suddenly surrounded by kids who all wanted to hug him but there was little room. Moving Jemma slightly he shuffled Skye to one side with him, ignoring her muttering into his chest. Normally he would have just lifted her, but with only one good arm that wasn’t an option. He then beckoned the rest of the kids onto the bed, with Leo joining Jemma, Phil lying on his good shoulder and Mel and Tripp sitting on his other side.   
“Can I hug you?” Mel asked, noticing the bandage on his shoulder. “I don’t want to hurt you.”  
“You won’t. Try not to bump my shoulder and I’ll be fine.” He reassured her, smoothing a piece of hair from her face. To be honest he didn’t care about the pain when they hugged him, it was just nice to get hugs.  
“Why’s mum lying on you?” Tripp was examining how Skye was lying on him as if trying to work out what had happened. Ward had a sudden flash of having to give him the birds and bees talk and swallowed. Not a conversation he wanted to have for a long time!  
“I’m just comfy!”  
“Really?”  
“I think she’s making sure I didn’t escape. Apparently taking care you is too much for her on her own.” He teased.  
“Dad!” Every child yelled with indignation, causing Skye to stir against him.  
“No you’ve done it.” He warned.  
As she lifted her head, Ward found himself missing her warmth and weight.  
“Hey.”  
“Hey. I see we got some visitors.” She looked totally amused, thankfully not upset at having been woken.   
“Yeah they were pretty eager to see me.”  
“Dad! We’ve got stuff to show you.” Leo burst out bouncing slightly on the bed.  
Noticing Ward’s slight wince Skye raised herself completely to stop him, slight surprised when she saw she’d been completely lying between Ward’s legs.  
Seeing Skye’s blush he turned back to the kids to give her a little bit of privacy.  
“Go and put your slippers and dressing gowns on and then you can show me.”  
There was a charge as all the kids raced out of the room, Leo taking charge of Phil.  
“Sorry…” Skye muttered as soon as they were gone. “I didn’t mean to…” He cut her off with a gentle kiss that got heated very quickly. Pulling back with dazed faces they gazed at each other for a second.  
“Dad! Hurry up!”  
Skye grinned ruefully at him.  
“Kids. You’ve got to love them.”

Once everyone was ready they headed to the kitchen, Ward carrying Phil, who was clinging to him like a limpet. It didn’t look like he was going to let go anytime soon. They insisted he closed his eyes before letting him into the kitchen; Tripp was in charge of guiding him. Skye had lectured him on being gentle as he was holding Ward’s injured arm. Sitting down when told Ward waited while everything was prepared, only opening his eyes when told. In front of him sat an envelope and a cake that had clearly been made by the kids. Shifting Phil to sit in his lap he quickly opened the envelope, showering both of them in glitter as he pulled out a card. On the front was a family stood under a banner that was covered in glitter, inside every child had signed their name even Phil. Looking at it he felt a lump in his throat.  
“Do you like them? We made them all on our own.” Mel asked when he didn’t speak.  
Pulling her closer he pressed a kiss to her head.  
“I love them. Thank you.” He pulled all of the kids to him, kissing each of them, even Tripp though he tried to pull away.   
“Come on then let’s eat this cake.”  
“Cake for breakfast. Best day ever!” Leo cheered.  
As the kids moved to get plates Skye bent and whispered in his ear,  
“If I knew kissing you would allow us to eat junk food I would have done it sooner.”  
“I’m happy with that.” He grinned at her.  
“I can’t do it too much! It clearly breaks your programming. I need you functioning!”  
“I’m sure I can cope.”  
*********************************  
They’d agreed to spend the day together, doing nothing more than watching movies. The kids wanted to be close to Ward right now and he didn’t really want to go out. They would need to think about sending them to school at some point but for now she was content to let them spent time with Ward. Skye knew his shoulder was bothering him more than he was letting on. She headed into grab him some painkillers for him. He was going to take them if she had to force them down his throat. Though she may have found a new way to make him swallow them, though not one she could use in front of the kids unless she wanted to scar them for life. She hadn’t intended to sleep on Ward last night. She knew she kept moving to sleep with her head on him; it was comforting to listen to his heartbeat. She hoped she hadn’t hurt him lying on him; she had to admit he really was comfy to lie on though.

As she carried the pills back into the living she heard a scream from within the kitchen. Catching Ward’s eye as she passed the living room she waved for him to stay seated. Heading into the kitchen she found Tripp standing on one of the stools staring at something on the ground. The stool trembled as he stood on it, making small whimpering noises. Frowning Skye moved forward wondering what had upset him so much. There didn’t appear to be anything on the floor, just something that had been spilt. It wasn’t until it moved that she realised it was a spider. As it moved closer Tripp scrambled off the stool and onto the bench, trembling as he backed away. Grabbing a glass she placed it over it, before safely depositing it outside. Closing the door she moved back towards Tripp, pulling him to her.  
“It’s gone now.” She rubbed his back gently as he clung to her. “Come on let’s go and watch the rest of the movie.”  
Nodding shakily he jumped down and headed back to the others, burying in beside Ward on the sofa. Sensing the boys discomfort he casually wrapped his arm around him, allowing his warmth to sooth Tripp. Slipping in between the children Skye found a seat and moved Phil so he could lie between her and Ward. Once everyone was comfy again she reached up and placed a pill at Ward’s lips.  
“Open up.” She commanded.  
Slightly glaring at her he eventually did, allowing her to place the pill in his mouth. Before she could remove her fingers he closed his mouth, gently sucking on her fingers. She gaped at him as he grinned in response finally releasing her fingers. Why did he choose to do this now when she couldn’t retaliate? Was he trying to drive her crazy?  
****************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually managed to get this out before tomorrow! Thank you for all the messages. I’m sure I’ll have a great day tomorrow. The spider thing is how I react to spiders, the further I can get away from them the better! Next time Mel has a fact that upsets Ward and something unexpected occurs.


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics are texts

***********************

They’d had a few quiet days, Ward being unable to do much with his sore shoulder. Bruce had appeared and given him a quick check up, saying that he would be fine in a couple of days. Unfortunately this had led to them staying in for a few days. The children had quickly become bored, fights breaking out frequently. Although they all normally got on well being in a close space wasn’t doing much for their tempers.

“Ok I’ve had enough.” Ward commented, as they got ready for bed. Sitting on the bed he winced as he removed his shoes. He still couldn’t move his shoulder without pain. Doing everything one handed was getting annoying as well.

“Of what?” Turning as she brushed her hair she noticed him struggling to change. Standing between his legs she lifted his shirt, helping him ease it over his sore shoulder.

“The kids fighting. Tomorrow we’re going out.” Wincing he glared at the PJ top on the bed and decided against it. He’d tortured himself enough for one day.

“You sure? I know you’re still having problems with your shoulder.” Moving onto the bed she knelt behind him and gently began massaging his back. Bruce had shown her how to relax the muscles. Besides it was nice just to run her hands along his body, she would swear he had muscles where most people had none.

“I know but I can’t deal with another day of fighting.” He sighed leaning into her touch.

“Ok. There’s a kid’s club they’ve been to before. They seemed to like it the last time apart from Tripp. He was bored.”

“You took them to a kids club?”

“Nat checked everyone out and Fury signed off on it.”

“Ok. We need to find something for Tripp to do then.”

Nodding even though he couldn’t see her she gave his back a final rub, before pressing a gentle kiss on his shoulder.

“A kiss to make it better.” She murmured, shuffling across the bed to her side.

 

The next mourning their decision was validated with two fights occurring before breakfast. Mel and Tripp had fought as they both wanted to watch something on the TV, while Phil and Leo had torn a toy in half, both wanting to play with it at the same time. Only Jemma was behaving, too busy reading a book on the bones of the body to notice anyone around them. As they both rushed to stop the arguments they shared a glance, knowing that if this continued they would both go insane. Having glared the kids into silence over breakfast they quickly packed up the car and headed out.

*******************************

 

Arriving and seeing the crowded room Mel clung onto Dad’s hand as she scanned the people there. Leo and Jemma had already run off, noticing one of the computer games was free. Phil was rolling around in a padded play area but she didn’t feel like joining him. Tripp had turned his nose up at everything here so Mum had taken him away.

“Don’t you want to play Mel?” Dad asked, bending down so she didn’t have to look up as much.

She shook her head. Everyone already had a partner or was busy; she didn’t want to disturb them.

“Do you want a drink?”

“Please.” She ran over to the counter, picking apple juice while Dad chose coffee, horrible bitter drink. Sitting on his lap she watched as Phil giggled as he sat on a spinning pole, giggling as Leo spun him faster. As Leo had abandoned her Jemma was playing with some other girls, dressing dolls in different outfits. She’d never been that fond of dolls finding them occasionally crept her out. Jemma had asked her to join them but she was happy watching Phil laugh. As she was considering going and making a decorative glass for mum she noticed a familiar face moving towards her.

“James!” She screamed, waving manically as the blonde haired boy noticed her.

“Who’s James?” Dad wiped up coffee that had been spilt when she’d waved.

“I met him last time. I’m going to go play with him.”

“Ok. I’ll be here.”

“I know. Don’t worry about him Dad. He’s my boyfriend.” Running and grabbing James’ hand she failed to notice the shocked look on Ward’s face.

 

‘ _Mel has a boyfriend!’_

_‘Ward?’_

_‘Mel has a boyfriend’_ Ward could barely hit the keys quick enough.

_‘Oh I know! Isn’t it sweet?’_

_‘No! She isn’t allowed boyfriends! She isn’t dating till she’s 30!’_

_‘You do know that you’re freaking out just a little bit! She will be fine. She’s not that old. If she was Tripp’s age then it would be a problem.’_

Ward rolled his eyes at Skye’s message. Of course it was an issue. She was his responsibility. Besides who knew what the boy was thinking. He was a little boy once and he didn’t want anyone thinking about Mel the way he’d thought at that age. He was going to have to keep an eye on them.

 

Jemma had finished playing with the dolls as her friends had to leave. Not being able to find Dad she joined Leo and Phil.

“Where’s Dad?” She sat down beside the boys as Phil began using her as a climbing frame while Leo kept spinning around. Reaching out and stopping him, he pouted at her before replying.

“He’s watching Mel. He doesn’t like the boy she’s with.” Having said his piece he continued spinning again.

“I liked him. Dad is strange!”

“Dad!” Phil called, leaning away from Jemma to try and find him.

“I need a drink.” Whined Leo, his face blurring as he spun faster.

“It would probably make you sick.” Jemma muttered, watching him with disapproval.

“Drink.” Phil pouted, copying Leo. Rolling her eyes Jemma hoisted him onto her hip. Surely she could find something for them to drink here. She’d seen the adults go into a room and come back with a drink. Striding over she heard Leo cry behind her before hurrying to join them. A heavy door blocked the area where all the adults disappeared. Even with the two of them they couldn’t open it. Fortunately Leo had been reading a book about forces given to him by Bruce, so knew if they used a bit more leverage they could open it. Grabbing a small bar that was lying in a toolbox he managed to open the door enough so they could all slip through. It closed with a band behind them making them all jump. They were in a kitchen, like the one at home but simpler. Seeing the sink Jemma grinned, now all she needed to do was find some glasses.

 

Ward had sat close by Mel while she played with her ‘boyfriend’. Just thinking that word made him cringe. Frequent glances at the others told him that they were still having a good time and in no danger. It was about an hour later when Skye and Tripp found him as he glared at James as he brushed Mel’s hair behind her ear.

“Leave the poor boy alone.” Skye grumbled at Ward as it took all his restraint not to pull Mel away from the boy.

“Did you have a good time?” Ward barely looked up from the pair of laughing children in front of him.

“Mum bought us more games.” That made Ward look up, blinking at Tripp and taking in the slightly guilty expression on Skye’s face.

“Where are the others?” Skye diverted his rant swiftly. Glancing back at the play area he found it empty.

“Honey I lost the kids.” He spoke; using the code word to tell her he thought they’d been taken.

“I’m sure they’re around here somewhere.” Skye soothed as she began scanning the room. “Tripp get your sister.”

Ward swiftly moved around the room checking any hiding places there might be while Skye asked parents if they’d seen the children. When they’d both exhausted all options they met up beside the entrance.

“Anything?”

“No. They were there a few minutes ago. Jemma had just joined the boys.”

“We’ll find them Grant.” She laid a comforting hand on his arm, knowing that although he looked calm he’d be freaking out on the inside. Behind them there was a lot of banging going on. They paid no attention to it until there was a sudden squeal.

“You don’t think?” Skye asked.

“I wouldn’t put it past them.” Ward strode towards the noise, pushing open the fire door. Entering the kitchen he froze as he took in the site.

“Dad.” Phil yelled from where he was sat in the sink. Striding forward Ward picked up Phil, while Skye lifted down Jemma and Leo from the bench. Without speaking Ward strode from the room and headed towards the car. He couldn’t really say anything.

***********************************

Owls were hooting as they approached the house. It was completely in darkness, silent apart from the alarm, beeping to be turned off. Before it could scream and alarm the neighbours one of the group reached out and silenced it. Avoiding the toys that lay beside the stairs they moved almost silently upstairs towards the only light within the house. Pausing outside one of the bedrooms they found someone standing beside a crib talking to the child who was lying up at her. Taking out a silenced gun one of the group pried the door open more. Taking aim he shoot the woman in the back, watching as she fell to the floor. Stepping over her they plucked the baby out of the crib, slightly surprised he simply watched them without crying. Having got what they came for, they left as silently as they had entered.


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So people have been asking the kids ages. They’re not exact as they remember some of their adult life’s but: Tripp= 13, Mel= 8, Leo and Jemma = 7 and Phil= 2

************************  
Jumping awake at the sound of a scream, Ward ran down the corridor to the boys’ room room. Entering the room he found Leo screaming from his bed while Tripp stood over a body on the floor. Blinking he raced further into the room, falling to his knees in front of the body.   
“Skye! Skye!” He called gently shaking her, wondering what had happened.  
“Dad.” Tripp pressed his body into Ward’s as he cried. “She won’t wake up.” Ward’s heart broke as he listened to the boy cry, wondering what had happened. The alarm hadn’t gone off, yet Skye was on the floor and Phil wasn’t in his cot. What had happened?

Spinning rapidly he shoved Tripp behind him and dragged Leo beside Tripp as he heard a noise coming nearer. Preparing to charge he was surprised when Nat entered the room holding a gun ready.  
“Ward stand down.” She ordered noticing his defensive position.   
“Nat?”  
“The alarm went off. We got sent to investigate.”  
“Skye… Phil’s gone.” Ward stuttered moving back to examine Skye.  
“We need Bruce and contact Fury.” She ordered into her coms. “Clint come and look after the boys. I’ll go and stay with the girls.”   
Ward nodded his agreement as he concentrated on trying to figure out what had happened to Skye. He barely noticed Clint enter the room and pick up the boy so they no longer had to look at Skye’s prostate body. Just as the ambulance arrived he found a small dart beside her body.  
As they loaded her up to go to the hospital Nat reappeared.  
“Go with her. We’ll look after the kids.”  
“Phil?”  
“Fury is on it. He’ll find him. Go be with Skye.”  
Ward nodded slightly, wanting to split himself in three so he could find Phil, stay with Skye and reassure the kids. He moved with the gentle push climbing in the back with Skye, trying to ignore the mournful look coming from the kids. 

Two hours later and he still hadn’t found out anything. He couldn’t use his badge to encourage the doctors to tell him anything, as they were still undercover, at least they knew he was married to Skye so he didn’t have issues with them not wanting to tell him anything. He’d been pacing for a while when Bruce eventually stopped him, pulling him gently to a seat beside him.   
“She’s going to be fine Grant. She’s just had a bad reaction to the sedative that was in that dart you found. It will take her a while to shake it off but she’ll be fine.”  
He felt his body slump, for once in his life not compartmentalising his emotions. Shaking with relief his thoughts changed track.  
“How did I miss it? I should have noticed someone entering the house. Now Phil’s gone and Skye is in here.”  
“Do not beat yourself up. I talked to Nat. The alarm had been switched off, it was only the second silent alarm that alerted Fury.”  
“I still should have heard them in the house. I only heard Leo scream.” He began pulling his hair.  
“Grant.” Bruce detangled his hands from his hair, holding onto him so Ward was looking at him. “You’re on fairly strong painkillers. You wouldn’t hear them. It’s not your fault.”  
He looked at Bruce for a long time, not really believing what he said.  
“What do I do?” He couldn’t remember a time he’d felt so lost.   
“Go and sit with her. I got permission for you to sit with her. Let us help you. Clint and Nat are looking after the kids and Fury will find Phil. Just go be with Skye. She needs you right now.”  
****************************

Fury strode into the tech room, his temper just held in check. Somebody was going to be fired.  
“WHO DESIGNED THAT ALARM?” He bellowed, causing several thousands worth of equipment to be destroyed as cups of coffee got spilt on it. A group of trembling scientist watched fearful as he strode further into the room.   
“Who designed the alarm that was hacked and has led to one of my team being taken?”  
“Sir. Surely they should have been able to…”  
“I don’t want excuses! I want answers.”  
“It shouldn’t have been hacked.”  
“You.” He pointed to the guy who’d just spoke. “Pack your things you’re going to the arctic station. The rest of you better improve that alarm by time I get back or you’ll be the next transfers.”   
His point made he strode back out of the room. He didn’t have time to stand around; he had a child to find.  
“Sir.” Maria had caught up with him, following him as he headed for his car. “I traced the group that entered the house using the local cameras. Tracked them to this building.” She handed him a pad with the address. “I didn’t think you’d want anyone else knowing what was going on. Do you want back up?”  
“No I’ll manage. You go and see the kids. I’ll get our boy back.”  
***********************************  
Drinks were being tossed back. Celebration of a job well done. Things were now running smoothly, the jobs well rehearsed. It would be time to move on soon, thing becoming too hot in this town. Their current job sat silently watching them, waiting to be shipped off to his new family. The team talked off the things they would by. Child snatching was a dangerous business but people desperate for children paid well. The perks were good if you lived long enough to use them. 

It hadn’t been a difficult job; the house had a simple alarm that had been easily hacked. Sure there had been a woman awake that had been unexpected but she’d been easily dispatched with the drugged dart they always carried. There had been no additional problems when leaving so hence the celebration. No one considered that it might be a bit premature or that trouble was waiting just around the corner. 

The first they knew that they’d been found was when the front door blew inwards, revealing a tall bald man in a black trench coat, an eye patch over on eye. Guns were strapped to his body and as he strode in and his coat blew backwards, grenades could be seen clipped onto his belt.  
“I want my Grandson.” He announced calmly.   
Looking at each other the trained killers began to laugh. Who did this man think he was?  
“Don’t know what you’re talking about man.”  
“You don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m giving you five seconds to give him me or I use force.”  
“You and what army?”  
“Who needs an army?” He stated throwing a small ball towards the group. It rolled towards them before coming to a stop.  
“Oh a ball. I’m so scared!” One mocked just before the ball exploded, sending plumes of paralysing gas outwards. It only affected those nearest it so as he strode forward he fired an ICER taking out those unaffected by the gas. Sat on a filthy cloth Phil watched quietly smiling as he saw Fury stride towards him.  
“Grandpa!”  
“Hello Phil. Let’s get you back to your family. They’re missing you.”  
“Grandpa!” Phil wrapped his small arms around Fury’s neck as he lifted him and held him close to his body.  
“Freeze!” Yelled one gunman who’d some how missed the gas and his shots. Shielding Phil Fury turned to glare at the man.   
“Why is there always a stupid one?” He muttered as he shot the man where he was standing. Scanning the area and finding it full of fallen bodies he activated his coms,  
“Maria inform the police. They’re going to be interested in this group. I’ll take Phil to be check out by Bruce before returning him to Agent Ward.” He gave a final glare around the room before heading for his nearby car. This group really picked the wrong baby to kidnap!  
**************************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a short chapter this time. Next chapter will be longer but I won’t get it up this next week as I’m on two fieldtrips. One is just a day but the other is a five-day trip up to Scotland so I won’t have time to write I’m afraid. But next time Skye wakes up and the family is reunited.


	26. Chapter 26

Beep. Beep.   
It was all she could hear and it was driving her insane. It was somewhere nearby and seemed to be coming from all around her. Slowly blinking her eyes she glared around the room trying to find the offending object. Unfortunately everything was blurry. She’d have resorted to smacking her hand around in the hope it would shut up the infernal beeping but they felt way to heavy. Taking a few deep breaths she kept blinking hoping it would clear her vision. As the room came into focus she couldn’t help the groan that escaped her. The room was so plain and boring that it could only be a hospital room. A fact that was confirmed when she rotated her head and found a heart monitor hooked up to her, the source of the annoying beeping noise. Huffing in frustration she decided that she couldn’t switch it off, angry nurses were too much to deal with at the moment. The only thing that brightened up the room was a sleeping Ward, scrunched uncomfortably in a plastic chair. He truly was adorable when asleep. Though this time he had a slightly worried look on his face, one arm carefully wrapped around a sleeping Phil cradling him to his chest.   
What the hell had happened?  
The last thing she remembered she was telling Phil a story to try and get him to settle back down again. Then nothing.   
“How are you feeling?” Looking up at the quiet voice she found Bruce smiling down at her from the bottom of the bed.  
“Groggy. What happened?” She mirrored his quiet tone as not to wake her sleeping boys.  
“You had a bad reaction to a sedative.”  
“Sedative?”  
“Somebody broke into the house and stole Phil. You got hit with a sedative in the process which you had a bad reaction to hence the hospital.”  
“Phil? The kids?” Her voice rose slightly as she tried to process what she’d been told.  
“Relax they’re fine. The only person I’m concerned about other than you is Ward. The rest of the kids are with Nat and Clint. Fury retrieved Phil and I checked him over myself. Other than being tired he’s fine. As soon as he was back with Ward he fell asleep.”  
“Ward?”  
“He didn’t do well when he found out what had happened-blamed himself. Not that he could have done much.”  
“Stupid robot. We have alarms!”  
“I know but he believes he should have heard them. The fact he isn’t at full strength and is on strong painkillers seems to mean nothing to him.”  
“I’ll talk to the idiot!”  
“I have every faith in you getting through to him.” Bruce smiled at her and not for the first time did Skye wonder what Ward had told Bruce about her. He seemed to know something that he wasn’t telling.  
“Anyway I’ll let you wake him up and tell him your fine. He wouldn’t hear it from me. I’m sure Nat will be along with the rest of the kids soon.”  
“Thanks Bruce.”  
“Anytime.”

She turned back to glare at her idiot. Of course he would take all the blame. What was the point of having alarms? The man was an idiot, she wanted to slap him around the head but that would take too much energy. Instead she shuffled carefully to the edge of the bed so she could lean down and press a kiss against his hand that rested on the edge of the bed. As she expected it woke him immediately blinking slightly as he sifted Phil closer to his chest.  
“Hey. How’re you feeling?”  
“Groggy but fine. Bruce has just been in. He told me what happened. He says both Phil and I are fine.”  
“I know.” He seemed to hesitate before continuing. “I’m sorry Skye.”  
“For what?” Oh the idiot was going to actually do this.  
“I should have protected you. I failed.” He hung his head in shame and it took all of her strength not to get out of bed and shake him.  
“Idiot.”  
“What?”  
“You’re an idiot. I know I call you a robot but you’re not.”  
“Skye…”  
“No listen to me. There was nothing you could do. We have alarms. Besides which you are injured. You are not a robot Grant. You are allowed to rest and recover. I don’t blame you and I’m sure if Coulson was an adult and here he would say the same. So stop blaming yourself. If you want to blame anyone have a go and the person who designed the alarm.”  
“Fury’s already done that.”  
“Did Fury blame you?’  
“No but he should’ve done.”  
“Grant do not make me get out of this bed.” She warned. “You are not to blame. Understand?”  
He nodded slightly before looking sheepishly at her.  
“That’s better. Now if you want to blame someone go and talk to those who made the alarm.”  
“I think Fury terrified them.”  
“I’m sure you could think of something else.”  
“I’ll work on it.” He smiled slightly at her.  
“Idiot.” She replied again squeezing his hand. This dork was becoming more adorable by the moment. Leaning in he pressed a gentle kiss against her lips, shifting Phil so he wasn’t squished.   
“Now get some more sleep.” He ordered.  
“You should go home.”  
“I’m fine here.”  
“You look it.” She snarked back.  
“Just go to sleep Skye.” He shifted back into the chair, closing his eyes cutting off the discussion.

It seemed like no time at all when she felt a small thump on the bed. Turning in the direction it came from she found herself face to face with Leo.  
“Mummy!” He yelled waking Phil who started crying. A further three thumps came as the rest of the kids scrambled onto the bed, all-trying to hug her at the same time.   
“Guys. I’m fine. Guys.”  
“Don’t do that again.” Tripp pleaded as he clung to her.  
“I don’t intend to.” She promised kissing him on the head.   
“We were worried.” Mel announced sniffing.  
“I’m sorry but I have something to make it up to you. Do you know what time it nearly is?”  
“Bonfire night!” Cheered Jemma and Leo.  
“What’s bonfire night?” Tripp asked.  
“It’s a British thing. Celebrated with fireworks.” Ward informed him while he bounced Phil gently.  
“Oh. No not that.” Skye made a mental note to bring it up with Ward though. It sounded like fun.  
“Halloween.” Tripp commented.  
“Exactly. So I thought we might want to dress up and go out.” She was nearly deafened by the cheers from the kids. “I take it that’s a yes then?”  
Ward looked at her, which she ignored. The kids would love it plus it gave her an excuse to dress him up.  
“Are you and Dad going to dress up?” Jemma frowned.  
“Of course.” Skye replied before Ward could deny anything.  
Bending to place a now happy Phil on the bed he leant in so only she could hear his whisper.  
“You are so going to pay for this!”  
********************************************  
For all that Ward was slightly annoyed, Skye had to admit that Halloween was a success. They’d spent the day baking various spooky treats, including zombie cupcakes and mummy biscuits. Even Mr Grumpy had enjoyed himself. She’d caught him grinning from time to time when he thought she wasn’t watching. All the kids had eaten so much cake she was sure they were going to be sick. But now was the part she’d been really looking forward to. They were all dressing up and getting ready to go out. 

Phil had been easy dressing as the cookie monster in a blue fluffy onesie that was completely adorable. His favourite thing at the moment was to yell out cookie every five minutes so it fit well. Jemma had decided she wanted to be a skeleton, as she knew all the bones of the body. The most difficult part of her costume was finding one that was anatomically correct, as Jemma had refused to wear anything else. Mel was being a dragon, the spectacular suit made by Tony, as they hadn’t managed to find a costume anywhere. Leo was dressed as Merlin, in long robe he kept tripping over but Skye had to admit suited him. Tripp had been one of the hardest to get a costume for as he kept changing his mind. Eventually he had settled on being Eva from WALL.E as she was cool apparently. The kids had also chosen their outfits, leading to Skye being dressed as Flynn Rider from Tangled. Ward was the best though. The kids had decided to keep with the Tangled theme, eventually persuading him to dress as Rapunzel. When he’d objected they’d informed him he could only be her as he could do the transformation with her short hair after Flynn had cut it.  
“I might just kill you!” He muttered as he slunk out from their bedroom.  
“It’s a good look on you.” She stifled her giggles as he glared at her. “You should wear dresses more often.”  
“You so owe me.”  
“The kids are happy.”  
“I’m not on about that! Don’t think I don’t know that you encouraged them to make me Rapunzel.”  
“What can I say, it’s a good for you.”  
“Dad you look good.” Mel announced as she lifted her tail to stop it dragging on the floor.  
“You guys look amazing!” Ward announced taking in the grinning children. “Shall we go and get some candy?” He led the cheering children to the door, ushering them all past him.  
“Wanting to get this over with?” Skye teased as she passed.  
“You so owe me.”  
“I’m sure I can think of something.”  
********************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah Bonfire night is British but so am I so I have to include it. Hope you like the Halloween costumes. I know it’s late but I spent my Halloween being a lonely pole in Scotland. Any geographers will know what I mean!


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot of people have asked will I turn the kids back. The answer is yes eventually. But I'm having a lot of fun with this at the moment but I will probably run out of ideas. Plus we need to find out a bit more about what has actually happened to them. But at some point I will definitely give this story an ending.

****************************  
Bonfire Night is an annual event dedicated to bonfires, fireworks and celebrations. Different traditions celebrate Bonfire Night on different days. In the United Kingdom, Bonfire Night is associated with the tradition of celebrating the failure of Guy Fawkes' actions on 5 November. The modern festival is, therefore, on 5 November, although some commercially-driven events are held at a weekend near to the correct date, to maximise attendance. Bonfire night's sectarian significance has generally been lost: it is now usually just a night of revelry with a bonfire and fireworks, although occasionally an effigy on Guy Fawkes is burned on the fire.

Ward rubbed his eyes as the Wikipedia article blurred in front of him. After Leo and Jemma had mentioned Bonfire Night Skye had decided it would be something fun for them to do so he thought he’d better look it up. He’d already put a phone call into Tony who was in charge of making the fireworks, which could lead to them blowing up the neighborhood. Pepper was supposed to be keeping an eye on him so the chances of it happening were reduced. Bruce was bringing some sort of alcohol for the adults, while Nat and Clint were in charge of food. Maria had the task of ensuring that Fury managed to make it while they were hosting the big party. The kids had no idea what was happening other than they couldn’t use the back garden. It had been difficult to arrange everything without them finding out, hence why he was up at a ridiculous time to use the computer.  
“Are you coming to bed?” Turning he found Skye watching him sleepily from the door.  
“Sorry I didn’t want to wake you. I was just making sure everything is ready for tomorrow night.”  
“Everything will be fine. Now come to bed. I need you well rested. You’ve got to distract the kids while I write a computer program to ensure the fireworks all go off at the right time.”  
“You could do that in your sleep.”  
“Just come to bed.”  
“Sure I’ll be two minutes.”  
He waited until she’d disappeared before sending a quick email to Nat. He wanted to make sure his special project would work and was going well.

The kids had clearly picked up on the vibes, being more hyper than normal. It had taken him nearly an hour to get them all dressed, Mel insisting on wearing her dragon costume again. In the end he’d given in, trying to avoid wincing as she strode about the house wiping out anything below waist level. Maybe they didn’t need as many tables as they had. He wasn’t explaining that one to Fury. Skye had managed to sneak away under the pretense of having to write a report. Thankfully it hadn’t taken her long and he’d managed to distract the kids by making food with the pumpkin they had from Halloween. There was now enough pumpkin pie to last them till Christmas. He’d now got roped in to braiding the girls’ hair while Skye played video games with the boys. Jemma was sat in front of him while he finished her French braid while Mel was playing with Phil.

It was almost a relief when it hit four o’clock. It was getting extremely difficult to keep the secret any longer. Tripp had been giving him suspicious looks for a while now. He wanted to tell them what was going on but knew that the surprise would be worth it. As the bell went at a nod from Skye he spoke.  
“I wonder who that is. Why don’t you go and see?”  
There was a mini stampede as they charged towards the front door.  
“Uncle Tony! Auntie Nat! Uncle Clint! Uncle Bruce!” They squealed as they surged forward to greet the group stood on the doorstep.  
“Uncle Tony who’s that lady with you?” Jemma asked from her position in his arms.  
“This is Pepper.”  
“Is she your girlfriend?”  
“Yes she is.”  
“Auntie Pepper. Come in.” Grabbing her hand Jemma pulled her into the house while the others laughed at her actions.  
“Welcome to the family.” Skye greeted with a grin. “We decided to eat outside. Guys to you want to get your coats.”  
“Uncle Tony! Can I show you my inventions?” Leo bounced in front of him, while Skye and Ward exchanged a look.  
“He’s been building things?” Bruce muttered to Ward.  
“He hides in the wardrobe when he knows your coming.” Tripp supplied.  
“I’ve ensured he won’t blow anything up.” Tony commented as he followed Leo upstairs.  
“That’s so reassuring.” Ward muttered shaking his head.  
Bruce grinned at him before scooping up a dribbling Phil and heading outside with Skye and Pepper. Clint was already being a climbing frame for Jemma and Mel while Tripp got into a deep discussion with Bruce.  
“That task you gave me.” Nat commented once everyone had moved away.  
“Yes.”  
“I believe I managed to achieve it.”  
“Thank you. I owe you.”  
“Help me move this food in and we’re even.”  
“Deal.”  
Heading out the car he couldn’t help stop in slight horror at what he saw.  
“How many were you catering for?”  
“Kids get hungry. Besides have you seen the amount Clint eats?” He turned and gave her the look Skye had started calling his Daddy stare. “Ok. I may have got carried away. I don’t get the opportunity to cook very often.”  
“Come on then. It’s going to take us most of the night to get it inside.”  
Nat smacked him over the head before reaching for the first bowl.  
*****************************

“Barton! What the hell are you doing?” Fury strode into the back garden scowling at the archer who was juggling Phil and Mel at the same time.  
“Entertaining your grandchildren.” Clint replied calmly, ignoring the death stare that was leveled his way.  
“Give him here.” Fury snatched Phil and headed over to an empty seat in the garden while chattering to the boy.  
“He’s in a good mood today.” Clint remarked without sarcasm.  
“He’s been like this all day. I think he’s been looking forward to seeing his grandchildren.” Maria commented accepting a glass of wine.  
“Well one of his grandchildren.” Skye nodded towards Fury.  
“He has favourites.” Maria shrugged.  
“Ok let’s get this show on the road.” Tony bounced back to where everyone was sat.  
“What show?” Tripp’s head came up from shoveling food into his mouth.  
“Well…”  
“Ward this was your plan how about you explain.” Pepper covered Tony’s mouth before he could start.  
“As has been mentioned today is bonfire night. We thought it was something we should celebrate and spend time with family.”  
“So we have the family and the food part sorted. But we’re missing one final thing.” Skye continued.  
“Fireworks!” Squealed Jemma.  
“Want to push the button?” Skye asked.  
“Yeah!” Racing forward she headed to where Skye had set up a large red button that had Maria, Ward and Fury rolling their eyes.

As soon as the button was pressed the sky was lit up with a rainbow of colours. True to Tony’s style he couldn’t have simple fireworks, instead he’d designed them so they showed pictures, almost making a movie in the sky. They watched as Thor fought a dragon, the Hulk tackled Loki, Clint and Nat chased beekeepers and Captain America danced with Peggy Carter. Amidst cheering and the handing round of toffee apples and sparklers they watched Iron Man fly across the sky with the Iron Patriot.  
“Aww. Apple no.” Clint mumbled around a mouthful of toffee apple as Jemma sat on his lap. Nat was doubled up with laughter watching him struggle to unstick his teeth. Tripp was showing Leo how to write his name with a sparkler while Maria captured it on camera. Phil cuddled into Fury while sucking on a cookie. Bruce was chatting with Pepper while Tony examined his handiwork.  
“I think this went down well.” Skye commented leaning up on her tiptoes so he could hear her.  
“You know we’re going to have to do something spectacular for Christmas now don’t you?”  
“I’m sure we’ll think of something.”  
“At least we have time to plan.”  
“Don’t start. We haven’t finished this yet!”


	28. Chapter 28

A moaning noise woke him up. Blinking in the dim light he rolled to see the girls shaking awake Tripp.  
“Go away.”  
“No we need your help.” Mel hissed at him.  
“It’s too early.”  
“It’s 8 o’clock.”  
“Exactly it’s too early. Wake me at noon.”  
“Tripp.”  
“No.” He rolled away pulling the covers up over his head to ensure they couldn’t tickle him to wake him up.  
“Leave him. He’s being a typical teenager.” Jemma commented as she peered at him.  
“I won’t behave like that when I’m that age.”  
“No. Because you take after dad who seems to think it’s not insane to get up at the crack of dawn.” Came the muffled reply from the blankets. “Now do you mind? Trying to sleep here.”  
“Mel.” Leo slid to the floor finally joining them.  
“Good you’re up. We’re going to make breakfast in bed for mum and dad.”  
“We can’t cook.” He thought he ought to point that out.  
“Sure we can. It’s just science really.” Jemma pointed out, bouncing up and down on her toes.  
“Are you going to help or not?” Mel glared at him.  
“Sure. I’ll grab Phil.”  
“He might get in the way. He can’t do much to help.”  
“If we leave him he’ll cry then mum and dad will get up.”  
“He has a point Mel.” Jemma considered it.  
“Fine! Just keep him away from the hot stuff. We don’t want to burn him.”  
Smiling Leo reached over into Phil’s bed where he lay watching them.  
“Leeeoooo.”  
“Shh Phil.” He propped him on his hip as mum did and followed the girls out of the room. 

It turned out making breakfast wasn’t as easy as they thought. They’d already abandoned trying to do eggs. The first two had ended up on the floor when Jemma had cracked them against the bowl. The rest had turned black when they’d attempted to scramble them. As the coffee machine was complicated it was his job to make them. He had a knack with machines and though he would much preferred to dismantle it to understand how it worked, he had managed to make two cups of coffee. The coffee might be slightly burned but nobody would notice. Unfortunately as he was doing coffee it had meant him climbing up on to the work surface leaving Phil on the floor. He could come up on the bench with him as he couldn’t climb and he might fall. This had meant that he’d already rolled in the egg on the floor and was currently trying to find cookies. With his job done he dropped back to the floor and began removing Phil’s pjs, wincing at the slimy egg that covered his hands. 

The girls had been in charge of the rest of the breakfast, eventually resorting to simple cereal and toast as bacon and eggs were beyond them. There was no point even considering attempting pancakes. With Phil toddling in front of them they slowly made their way upstairs each carrying on of their carefully made items. There was a nervous moment on the stairs when Phil wobbled slightly, nearly falling backward. Mel managed to quickly prop him up, spilling only a small amount of orange juice in the process. A slice of toast made a bid for freedom but was quickly rescued by Jemma. They slowly made their way to the bedroom. There was a slight pause as they tried to work out how to open the door before Phil solved the problem by pointing at the floor and then the door. Eventually getting the message Leo placed the cups on the floor so he could open the door before picking them up and entering the room.  
As they had found before mum was snuggled against dad, her head on his chest, hair covering her eyes. Dad’s poorly arm was at his side while his other was around mum’s waist holding her close to him.  
“Go on Phil.” Jemma whispered, nudging him forward with her leg, nearly loosing her balance and sending cereal over the floor. Needing no more encouragement Phil surged forward, using the blankets on the bed to pull himself up. Eventually finding himself beside his parents he crawled over until he was sat above his mum’s head while sat on his dad’s chest. Leo watched as his dad’s eyes flickered open at the extra weight.  
“Hello Phil. How did you get in here?” He blinked sleepily at the little boy.  
“Daddy.” Phil pointed at the others, drawing dad’s attention for the first time.  
“Morning guys. What’ve you got there?”  
“Breakfast. We made you breakfast.” Jemma stepped forward showing him the cereal and toast.  
“Do I smell coffee?” Mum mumbled, nose wrinkling slightly.  
“We brought you coffee as well. I made it.” Leo stepped forward to hand over the cups.  
“I made the toast.” Mel piped up.  
“I made the cereal and poured the orange juice.”  
“Thank you guys. Why don’t you put them down on the side and come and join us?” Dad took his coffee and took a sip while they watched anxiously. “Its great.”

Leo grinned at him, before launching himself onto the bed, taking up the space where mum had been just minutes before.  
“We tried to get Tripp to help but he just went back to sleep.” It was clear Mel was still put out by that.  
“Don’t mind him. You guys didn’t need to do this.”  
“We wanted to.”  
They watched as their parents ate their food, refusing to eat anything they were offered, as the food wasn’t for them. Once only crumbs remained mum spoke again.  
“Have you guys eaten?”  
They all shook their heads.  
“Well how about we make some pancakes then?”  
“Be we do you mean me?” Asked Dad as he scooped up Phil who was beginning to gnaw on the bedclothes.  
“Of course.”  
***************************************  
The ringing of his phone interrupted his washing up. Recognising the ringtone he quickly dried his hands before answering.  
“Hey Nat.”  
“Hey how’d it go down?”  
“I haven’t done it yet.”  
“What are you waiting for?”  
“The right moment.”  
“That’s a cop out and you know it.”  
“Nat.”  
“Don’t Nat me. Just give it her. You know she’ll love it.”  
“No. I don’t.”  
“For a confident specialist you’re not very confident in real life.”  
“I can control things as a specialist. But feelings… I don’t understand them.”  
“Yes you do. Just give her it. Anyway where is she right now?”  
“Supervising the kids. They made us breakfast in bed this morning. Well everyone apart from Tripp did. He’s still asleep.”  
“Aww. They’re cute. I’ll have to steal them from you.”  
“Have your girls day. Then you’ll get to spend some time with them.”  
“Good idea. You and Clint could then sneak off and start your Christmas shopping for us.”  
He groaned at the thought.  
“Don’t remind me! Besides it’s Leo’s birthday before then. We’ve got to plan something for that.”  
“Get him a monkey.”  
“Don’t you start!”  
He heard her laughing as she hung up. Sighing he returned to the washing up pondering what she’d told him. She was probably right, but it didn’t mean he wasn’t worried. He knew he wasn’t good at the feeling thing. There was a reason Skye called him a robot. He believed he’d got better looking after the kids but it wasn’t easy. He’d never really been the person who told everyone what he felt. Sighing again he turned back to his job.  
“That’s a long sigh.”  
“Just thinking about Christmas.”  
“And that makes you sigh?”  
“More the fact that I’m aware what a task it’s going to be getting presents for all of them. Also Leo’s birthday.”  
“Hey we’ll do it together.” He felt a gentle pressure as she wound her arms around his waist, forehead pressing in the centre of his back. “Besides they’ll be happy no matter what we get them.”  
“Its just buying presents is such a big responsibility. I was never very good at it.”  
“We’ll do it together. I’m sure you’re better than you think.” She clung to him for a moment before gently letting go. “Now I think it’s time the teenager got up.”  
“How are you going to manage that?”  
“Why do you think I came in here? I need a jug.” Cold water filled the jug she’d selected. Picking up the fully jug she moved toward the stairs giving him a slightly evil grin. “I’m sure this will persuade him.”


	29. Chapter 29

“Are you sure you’re up for this?” Skye questioned as she towel dried her hair. It was enough to distract him, if only momentarily. Although he wasn’t close enough he would swear he could smell the vanilla scent from her shampoo that he always associated with her. He knew that others used the same shampoo, it was a common one but it never smelled the same as when she used it. Shaking his head slightly to clear the goofy smile that had started to spread across his face he answered her.  
“Sure how hard can it be?” He’d taken the kids swimming before. They’d even promised to be one their best behaviour as he was taking them on his own. Skye was using the kid free time to finalise Leo’s birthday party. So far they’d managed to keep everything a secret but as the kids had a habit of wandering into their room without knocking it was safer to wrap his presents when they were out of the house. The kids were terrible at keeping secrets.   
“That’s not what I meant. I was talking about your shoulder.”  
“It’s fine Skye. Besides the doctor said swimming should help it heal. Loosen the muscle without putting too much pressure on it.”   
She looked disbelievingly at him but thankfully dropped the subject. She’d been bugging him for a couple of days to go and get it check out again. But he knew that the only thing that would help it was time. No point seeing a doctor when all they tell you was something you already knew.   
“Well if you need any help just ring. Besides Tripp should be helpful.” He couldn’t help the smirk at that. He still wished he’d managed to catch her dumping water on the sleeping teenager on video. It was something that would stay in his memory for a long time. 

He’d followed her upstairs, drawn to watch the impending showdown. He hadn’t been the only one with the same idea, with Jemma and Mel hovering beside the boys’ bedroom. Skye had started off sweetly enough, asking Tripp politely if he would get up. His grunts and snorts had Jemma and Mel giggling in response. Ignoring her audience Skye once again tried to persuade Tripp to remove himself from his bed. Although she understood that the bed had now accepted him as one of their own but if he didn’t get up he was going to be forcibly removed from it. At the wave of a hand from the teenager, she shrugged before carefully opening a gap between the teenager and his bedclothes. With a slightly evil grin she dumped the jug of cold water in the gap, stepping backwards to avoid the spluttering teenager that launched from the bed.  
“What the hell?”  
“I warned you that I would forcibly remove you from the bed. I just never said how I would do it.” She reasoned amidst the laughing group behind her.

Since then Tripp had been an ideal child, helping them whenever they need it. Apparently he didn’t like the thought of cold water being poured on him again. It had also had the advantage of making the other kids behave, as they hadn’t wanted the same fate.   
“I’ll be fine don’t worry.” He reassured her.   
“I know. I just want you to need me to come down to the pool. I’m missing out on seeing you again in swimming trunks.” She grinned at him, leaving him gaping after her as she moved to deal with a crying Phil. Taking deep breaths he headed back into the bathroom, considering a cold shower before leaving the house.  
**********************************************  
He’d been right about it being easy to deal with the children. Tripp had taken Leo and Jemma to ride down the slides. All three of them were whooping as they rode down in rubber rings, racing to get back to the top to ride again. He’d sat himself in the shallows with Phil bobbing in a blow up ring while he watched Mel swimming. She’d wanted to practice her swimming, not feeling quite confident enough to go down the rides yet. Although he’d reassured her she would be fine, she preferred to stick close to him. It filled him with pride as he watched her gain confidence, slowly swimming further and further away from him. As he watched her duck under the water for the first time he unconsciously held his breath, only releasing it when she returned to the surface. Bouncing Phil up and down in the water he grinned as Mel waved towards him before ducking under the water again.  
“First time swimming?” He turned to find one of the women who’d been watching him since he entered the pool moving nearer to him. His natural instincts had tracked her even though he’d deemed her not a threat. His threat assessment had become even harsher since looking after the kids.   
“No.” He replied shortly trying not to be rude but not wanting to discuss the kids with a complete stranger.   
“Hey cutie.” She waved at Phil who watched her suspiciously, his normal happy personality completely gone. “Both your kids?”  
“Yes.”  
“It’s so nice to see a dad with his kids. Though I imagine two a quite a handful.”   
“Five.”  
“Sorry?”  
“I have five kids.” He replied, enjoying the look of horror on her face. He would have moved away but Phil trying to swim away distracted him.  
“Where you going Buddy?” He asked watching as Phil determinedly paddled away.   
“He’s quite fast.” The woman was still following him, leaving him wondering what he would need to do to get rid of her. He followed close behind as he swam over to a red haired woman before stretching up his arms.  
“Aunt!”  
“Hi Phil. Hey Ward.”  
“So that’s why he’s making a bit for freedom. Hey Nat.” He smiled at the spy stood before him, who was now bouncing Phil on her hip. “What are you doing here?”   
“Skye thought you might need rescuing but looks like your doing well.”  
“Auntie Nat.” Mel had now noticed Nat, flinging her arms around the spy sending water rippling over the group.  
“Hey sweetie. Nice swimming.”  
“Dad taught me.”  
Ward watched the pair with fondest, clocking the rest of the kids going flying past as they ran to go on the ride again.   
“Now how about you show me what you’ve learned and we’ll let your dad go on the lazy river?”  
“Yeah.”  
“Go and relax.” She pushed him none too gently towards the slow moving water. Retrieving Phil from her hip he headed in the direction she pushed him, noting he’d lost the annoying woman at some point. Oh well. He might as well enjoy the time out while he could.  
*********************************************

Two hours later and a scolding from Nat later and they were all back in the house. The kids were downstairs eating haven already been showered. He was now taking the opportunity to have his own shower. He was just pulling on his top as Skye entered into the room carrying a pile of clothes. Picking up a wrapped parcel on the bed she turned him confused.   
“What’s this?”   
“It’s… something for you. Something I thought you might like. Well I think you’ll like it and Nat said you would. But if you don’t just tell me and I’ll change it.” He rambled not looking at her.  
Pressing a gentle kiss against his cheek to stop him, pushing him gently so he sat on the bed. Throwing her legs across his lap to keep him still she began opening her present. Slowly a small silver album was revealed with my family written on the front. Opening it she found it filled with pictures of them all. There was pictures from the holiday, some she’d taken on days out, pictures from her and Ward’s date.  
“Nat put it together but I picked the photos.” He quietly added.  
“I love it.” Placing it carefully to one side she threw herself into his lap, kissing him. Pulling her closer he kissed her gently, weaving his hands into her hair. Things were starting to get more heated when they both heard a small voice.  
“Urgh. Mum and Dad are kissing!”  
*************************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To the guest who just reviewed thank you. Here is the update you were after. StoryPirate thank you for your comment it means a lot. Hopefully I can keep improving. This is for Nathyfaith who suggested the ending to this chapter. Next Leo’s birthday. If you want to suggest presents please go ahead.


	30. Chapter 30

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry this has taken as long! I had a bad final week at uni and then I moved back home for Christmas. Anyway I hope you like it.

**********************************************

Everything was ready. They’d snuck in the presents, prepared the rest of the kids. Now it was time for the big day. Leo had got more and more excited as the week went on. The other kids picking up on his excitement had been restless and refusing to behave properly. Skye had resorted to threats of cancelling the party just to get them to behave. As the morning came it wasn’t really a surprise when she was woken by a small body jumping on her. Blinking up from the cocoon of Grant’s arms.   
“Mummy! Mummy!”   
“Leo it’s early.” She complained snuggling further into Grant’s arms, burying her head against his bare chest.  
“But mummy! Presents!”  
She could feel Grant chuckling against her and sighed knowing she was fighting a loosing battle.   
“When your brothers and sisters are up then we’ll go downstairs.” She offered, smiling as the small weight moved from the bed.

“Wrong move.” Grant murmured against her head, his breath tickling her skin.   
“Huh?” She grumbled rubbing her cold nose against chest, feeling him flinch at the temperature of it.  
“GET UP! IT’S MY BIRTHDAY!” Leo yelled from the landing, banging on the doors as he went.  
“Oh god!”  
“Told you. Come on. You know he’s excited.”  
She clung to him as he tried to roll away from her, gasping slightly as he resorted to pulling away the bedclothes.   
“If you think this is bad. Wait for Christmas day!”

Five minutes later everyone was downstairs in the living room watching Leo opening his presents. Tripp was lying with his head in Jemma’s lap, half asleep while Mel bounced beside them. Phil was still asleep cuddled into Grant, leaving Skye with a slight pang of jealously. She was jealous of a baby! But then he did have a fantastic chest. As if sensing her thoughts he moved so she could sit beside him, arm around her pulling her so her head rested against his chest. Sat like this they watched as Leo opened his presents. Although they were coming to his party later the avengers had sent on Leo’s presents, knowing he would want to open them when he woke. Skye had rigged a camera so they would be able to see his reaction later on, plus it would be a nice memento when they finally returned to adults. 

Crossing her fingers as she looked at the gift, she prayed nobody had bought Leo a real monkey. Tony had threatened to until Grant put his foot down, something Pepper had agreed on. Nat and Clint had bought him a small stuffed monkey, with a voucher so he could go and meet a monkey at the local zoo. Tony had bought him a small build your own car set, which Skye was already worried would blow up the house. From Pepper he received a small set of overalls so he wouldn’t get his clothes mucky when building the car. Bruce had sent him a small tool set and a set of stickle bricks so he could practise building things. Thor had sent a ball from Asguard that Leo was already planning on taking apart to understand how it worked. Steve had bought him a new watch that had a game built in for when he was bored. Maria and Fury and bought him a set of books for ‘the little engineer’ something Skye suspected was chosen by Maria rather than Fury. From Phil he received a small wind-up captain America toy, with Mel, Jemma and Tripp all clubbing together to buy him a new game. Skye and Grant had bought him a set of new clothes along with a new light for his bedside table that projected holograms onto the ceiling. 

Delighted with all his presents Leo spent the next hour trying to play with them all at once. He’d found that the monkey toy danced and made noises whenever he squeezed it, driving Grant up the wall.

“Remind me to kill Nat and Clint later.” He commented to Skye after they’d suffered half an hour of constant monkey noises. 

“I think I’m setting rules for Christmas presents.” She replied stretching and placing a gentle kiss on his lips. Having finally persuaded everyone to get dressed she was entertaining the kids while Grant made the food for later. Phil, deciding to totter around, was clinging to Grant’s legs trying to help but being more of a hindrance. Hearing giggles Skye had gone to investigate finding both of them eating cookies, chocolate covering their mouths. Laughing at their guilty looks, she grabbed a cloth, wiping Phil down. Rolling her eyes at Grant she removed a blob of chocolate with her thumb before sucking it off her finger. As his eyes widened she sashayed off, leaving him standing there gawping.  
***************************************

Lunchtime came and the house began to fill. Grant had managed to make enough food even with him and Phil eating a lot of it. Pepper and Tony were the first to arrive with Bruce appearing soon after. Tony and Bruce had already started helping Leo build his car, with Tony suggesting ways to improve it. Pepper and Nat were playing with Jemma while Mel watched Steve with a dreamy expression on her face. Clint and Tripp were bouncing around on the bouncy castle they’d hired for the party. Phil, having been handed to Steve and immediately started crying, was now sat with Thor bouncing him on his knee while talking to Fury. Maria was busy helping Grant deal with the huge cake they’d snuck into the house while Leo wasn’t looking.  
“A monkey? Seriously Maria?”  
“Shut up Ward. No one bought him a real one.”  
Sighing he pushed in the last candle into the cake before heading outside. 

The food was going down well with Clint and Thor competing to see who could eat the most. Apart from Phil, all the kids were on the bouncy castle, with Mel showing off doing flips and rolls. Noticing Grant watching them wistfully, Nat nudged Clint.  
“Look at him.”  
“We should get him to go on it. Only time I’ve ever seen him look like that is when he’s looking at Skye and thinks no one can see him.”  
“Yeah but how?”  
“Push him on?”  
“With Skye or the bouncy castle?”  
“Both.”

Noticing Grant’s look as well Skye scooped up Phil and headed over to him.  
“Hey. Phil wants to go on the bouncy castle but I’m scared he’ll get hurt if he goes on his own. Will you take him on?”  
“Sure.” You couldn’t miss Grant’s face lighting up. She watched as he carefully held the toddler, clearing having as much fun as the kids as he bounced from side to side.  
“How’d you get him on? We’re were going to give him a push.” Nat passed her a glass of wine as she gestured to Grant.  
“Gave him an excuse.”  
“He’s such a big kid at heart.”  
“Yes he is.” She murmured watching with delight as Grant had the time of his life.   
**************************************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Christmas shopping! If you have anything you want the kids to get for each other or anyone else let me know.


	31. Chapter 31

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who reviewed. I love your ideas for presents. You’ll see which ones I use in the next chapter. StoryPirate yes I’m English. It’s habit calling it uni. This is shorter than I originally planned as I’m having issues writing on my laptop as I’ve hurt my neck.   
> ***************************************

He looked around the shops and grimaced. He knew this was a bad idea but he’d left things too late. Skye had arranged for some of them but had left him in charge of certain people. He’d kept ignoring it until he was left to shop in a slight panic. As specialist he should’ve known better but there was always something else that needed doing first. A pipe had burst, then the kids needed to go to the dentist. One day last week he’d intended to go shopping but then Phil had been poorly so he’d had to stay at home. Hence he was now shopping in a rush. It didn’t escape his notice that most of the shoppers were men. They had the same harried look as he did. Why did people do this to themselves?

A low cry distracted him momentarily. Glancing down at the pushchair he saw Phil cry slightly pointing at something in the crowd.   
“It’s alright Phil. We’ll be done soon.”  
The crowd made him slightly nervous, hence why he’d put Phil in the pushchair. Now he’d grown a little more they’d been letting him toddle around, carrying him when he got tired. Being used to this he no longer liked being strapped in the chair, but it was too busy for him to walk. He’d already evaluated all the shops and their locations, planning his route to buy everything he needed. It was even easier with Skye haven taking the kids ice-skating. Phil was too small to go so he’d agreed to look after him and had taken the opportunity to go shopping. 

Noticing Phil was staring off to one side Grant bent down to speak to him again.  
“No Phil. We’ve already been to see Santa.” They’d taken the kids earlier in the week. Skye had taken lots of photos including Jemma looking totally unimpressed with Santa and trying to escape. They’d even managed to get the presents off the kids before they’d been opened so they could be saved for Christmas day. No one had screamed and Mel hadn’t tried to attack anyone, though she had glared at a girl trying to push in the line. 

He’d managed to grab the presents for Nat and Clint, smirking to himself when he thought of Clint opening his present. He and Skye were clubbing together to get presents for everyone but she’d let him pick for them, as he knew them better. He still had to decide on something for Skye. She was one of the more difficult people to buy for, not only because he had to ensure she also got something from the kids. 

“Ok Phil?” He asked, seeing the little boy pointing again.   
“Dad.”  
“I know. Not long now. Only a few more presents to get.” Looking in the direction Phil had pointed he noticed something sat on a nearby shelf.  
“That can be for Skye from Tripp.”

Three more shops later and they’d nearly finished. He was just planning the last present he needed when Phil began to cry.   
“What’s wrong?” Grant asked beginning to panic slightly. “Phil?”  
Lifting him out of the chair he tried rocking him, bouncing him, yet the tears kept falling. He was about to call Skye in desperation when he saw Phil point at the cookie stand.   
“Are you hungry?”  
Phil nodded slightly, burying his head in Grant’s chest. Holding him close with one arm he grabbed the pushchair and headed for the food court. Buying a small portion of chips for Phil and a diet coke for himself he grabbed a seat, keeping Phil on his lap. As he stuffed the chips in his Grant muttered to him.  
“Don’t tell your mum.” Phil didn’t reply as he happily munched on his food.   
“Dad!” He began reaching for the coke.  
“You have a drink.” Grant replied pointing at his bottle of juice. Shaking his head he gently tipped the drink so Phil could sip on the straw.   
“At least it isn’t alcoholic.” He muttered as Phil tapped his small hand against the cup. Hearing his phone he gently detached Phil from the drink.

“Hello.”  
“Hello Agent Robot.”  
“Tony. You’ve been talking to Skye.”  
“We’ll your other half is quite a character.”  
“She isn’t my other half!” He replied quickly.  
“I meant as your looking after the kids together. What did you think I meant?” Tony laughed.  
“What’s up Tony?”   
“Defensive. I’m just checking what’s happening later?”  
“You checking things?”  
“Well Pepper asked me to.”  
“And?”  
“Ok. Pepper’s annoyed at me so as you’re at the shops can you pick something up for me? I need to get back in her good books.”  
“How’d… did you hack my phone?”  
“No. I just accessed you’re GPS.”  
“Tony! That’s hacking my phone!”  
“We’ll true. So will you do it?”  
“Fine. Just to make Christmas run smoothly.”  
“It’s all sorted. You just need to pick it up.”  
“I’ll sort it.”  
“By the way I hope you’ve picked something nice for your missus.” Tony rang off before he could retort. 

“I’m sorry Phil but I might murder your uncle Tony over Christmas. I now understand why you had some much trouble with him when you were older.” Now that was a weird sentence to say. Christmas was going to be interesting!


	32. Chapter 32

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please bear with me with presents. There are a lot of them to get through!

**********************************  
They’d arrived and caused chaos. Tony had given them an entire floor of the avengers tower for their stay, which they’d quickly taken over. The kids were delighted to find that they had their own rooms, leading the adults to guess they wouldn’t want to go home. They were amazed by Jarvis, kept asking questions and giggling when he answered. They loved the fact that all their aunties and uncles were staying with them and they could pop in the elevator to see them. They took great delight in going and jumping on Fury who was also staying in the tower. Skye and Ward spent their time alternatively stopping Fury killing the kids when they interrupted his work for the twentieth time that day and dodging mistletoe that seemed to have appeared all over their floor of the tower. 

“Jarvis. Does somebody keep putting mistletoe up?” Ward asked after weaving down the corridor to avoid all of the mistletoe hung up.  
“I’m sorry Agent Ward. I can’t answer that.”  
“Tony!” He used it like a swear word.

The only thing he could say about Tony was he didn’t scrimp on the decorations. Tinsel covered the tower with every floor having it’s own Christmas tree. The outside was covered in lights with dancing Santa’s and ringing bells. He’d even tried to tie a bow on Bucky when he visited Steve but had quickly changed his mind when Bucky had glared at him. Bucky wasn’t spending Christmas with them, wanting to spend a bit more time regaining his memories but hadn’t wanted to go through the festive period without seeing Steve. To his joy Phil had taken to him immediately, happily bouncing on his knee while he cried whenever Steve tried to pick him up. It had taken Grant four hours and several bribes to stop him crying once Bucky had left. Skye was already planning on contacting him and getting him to visit in the new year. 

Christmas eve was quietly spent. Leo spent the time with Tony watching him build a new iron man suit while Jemma sat on Bruce’s lap and mixed various chemicals. Mel had begun learning a new martial art with Nat while Pepper played with Bruce. Skye had taken the opportunity to have a bath while Ward swapped fighting tips with Clint and Thor. Knowing the kids would be up early they managed to get them all to bed for an early night. 

As they’d guessed the kids woke early, partially helped by a reminder from Jarvis that Tony had set the night before. Gathering all together they entered Skye and Ward’s bedroom, the door banging off the wall. As they’d learned at an early stage jumping on Skye was not a good idea in the morning so they all converged on Ward.   
“Daddy it’s Christmas!” Leo screamed in his ear as Skye rolled over and pulled Phil out of the way lest he get squished.   
“No it’s morning.” Ward groaned uncharacteristically burying his head in his pillow.  
“But presents!” Tripp argued.  
“Need sleep.” Ward mumbled much to Skye’s amusement.  
“Dad!” All the kids moaned.  
“How about you go and get everyone else up and I’ll persuade your dad to get up? Be careful with your grandpa.”   
She couldn’t help a laugh as the kids bounded from the room, discussing who would wake up whom. Turning back to the dozing specialist she began gently poking him on his side, eventually making him roll over onto his back.  
“What’s with you and sleep? You never sleep in.”  
“Christmas is the one day a year I do.”  
“Come on Grant.” She urged.   
“No.”  
Climbing on top of him she sat on his chest to stop him rolling over again, knowing he could handle her weight.   
“Come on Grant. They’re excited. Plus you get to see what I bought you.”  
Leaning down she whispered against his skin, noticing his eyes becoming more focused. As his hand slide to her hips she brought out one of her best weapons and reached for his ear.   
“OK! OK! I’ll get up!” He squirmed beneath her as she tickled him mercilessly. Seeing he’d caved she stopped, leaning down slightly as he propped himself up to look at her. 

“Mum we woke Grandpa! He says he’s going to shoot us!” Mel shrieked down the corridor.  
“We’d better go stop that.” He was so close Skye could feel his breath against her face.  
“Oh yeah.”  
***********************************************

Having appeased Fury with lots of Coffee and allowing Pepper to calm him down they all gathered on the top floor where all the presents were currently sat underneath the giant Christmas tree. Steve made quick work with pulling sofas close together as Pepper and Maria made coffee for the adults. Knowing chaos would ensue if they let everyone open presents at once they agreed the kids would open the presents one at a time, then the adults would open theirs. Wedging Phil between them, Skye and Grant the kids sat on the floor while everyone else took the other free sofas.

Leo started opening presents quickly and sending paper flying everywhere. He was practically bouncing as he unwrapped a remote control helicopter (Skye and Grant), a balloon helicopter and car (Clint and Nat), build your own iron man suit (Tony) and Doctor Who outfit from Pepper. Fury announced that the kids needed to open their presents from him at the same time so he was skipped, while Leo began playing with his new tool kit (Bruce) and projecting alarm clock (Maria). Steve’s 3D puzzle was shaken and a plan was already in place to complete it.

Next it was Phil’s turn, who was drooling on Skye. With Grant helping he received: An animal torch (Nat) and a giant teddy bear (Tony), which had Pepper rolling her eyes and Skye wondering how to fit it in the house never mind the car. Maria had managed to find a soft bath book for him while Steve had managed to find a kids cooking kit so he could cook along with Grant. Bruce had found a basic computer for him to play with and the suit PJ’s from Pepper went down well with the adults much to the confusion of the kids. Phil’s favourite present was a cookie monster toy and a jar of cookies from Skye and Grant; as soon as it was opened he began munching on the cookie. 

With Phil happy for a while they moved onto Tripp who’d noticed several large presents with his name on. To his delight he found a guitar (Nat), DJ set (Tony), Drum kit (Bruce), Keyboard (Steve) and Speakers (Maria). Noise reduction headphones from Skye and Grant were an attempt to keep the peace in the house. Pepper had broken the trend by buying him a falcon outfit that Tony had already promised to adapt to allow Tripp to fly. Clint was in trouble from most of the room for buying him a how to get along with the ladies book. 

Jemma went next, managing to keep her paper in a tidy pile. Disney movies (Skye and Grant) were met with squeals as were the beginner’s medical kit (Clint and Nat) and the chemistry set (Bruce). The first sewing kit from Steve had Grant calculating how many plasters he would need and Jemma insisted on changing into the Hermione outfit Pepper had bought her, refusing to let go of the microwavable Sheep from Maria.

Mel, who had sat patiently while the others unwrapped their presents, dove in with gusto. A swimsuit (Skye and Grant) had her dreaming of swimming again, with kick boxing pads (Clint) and a practise dummy (Nat) keeping with the fitness theme. A guide to taking out your enemies (Maria), spy pen (Bruce) and black widow outfit (Pepper) had her talking about becoming a spy. Wall bugs that let out sound and noise (Steve) completed her presents. 

Thor had found charades for kids, something to keep them entertained on rainy days. From Fury the kids found they had all received scooters with a small trike for Phil. Forbidding the kids to use them in the house Skye moved on to her presents. From all the children she received a charm bracelet with phone, computer charms and room to add more. Kissing them all she then moved on to the presents from the others. Steve and Maria had colluded to get her a pamper set, a day out and for the house. Pepper had bought her a beautiful dress with a note saying it was for a date night. Tony presented her with a state of the art laptop, which Fury had promised her had access to Shield satellites. Bruce set her crying with an electronic photo frame filled with pictures of the kids. Clint received a hit around the head with his gift of a cookbook and lovers key ring, something Skye wasn’t thinking about. Shoes to match the dress from Pepper and Spider bites from Nat left Skye grinning. The present of clothes from Grant had the others jeering but there was also a note mixed in with them which she hid from them. 

Skye and Grant’s presents to the others had gone down well. A nest seat for Clint and advanced targeting set for Nat had Fury groaning. Tony had a fit of giggles at his ‘I hacked Shield and got away with it’ shirt while Pepper loved the set of make up. Fury scowled at Maria’s ‘I’m really the boss mug’ but loved his Venus flytrap plant. Bruce was already discussing how to use his new tool kit with Steve planning runs with his new torch that was adapted for runners. 

Laughter filled the air as Tony opened what he thought was a simple mug from Clint, not realising it had ‘I’m a twat’ on the bottom. Steve soon chased Tony around the room having received an inflatable walking stick. Fury wasn’t impressed to receive a hairbrush for baldheads from Clint and ‘The grumpy old git's guide to life’ from Nat though the best grandpa shirt and mug from the kids went down a lot better. 

Grant was the last to open his presents. Skye’s gift of a new kindle and gym equipment was well received though Clint’s book had him scowling. Though it looked like an innocent book when you removed the cover you found a totally different book underneath, this one explaining how to get a woman. Nat’s body armour was a welcome present as was the dress shirt and night out with Skye (Tony and Pepper). The stress ball from Bruce had him grinning as did the porcupine toy from Maria. The kids had got him a selection of presents including a new frying pan, watch, sled but the gift of a mug with ‘anyone can be a father, it takes a special man to be a dad’ coaster had him fighting back tears. A first aid kit and shield from Steve brought back memories of their last mission. Fury’s first present of go the fuck to sleep book had him laughing but the uncovered box left him confused. There was no wrapping on it but it had several holes in the top. Gently lifting the lid he found a small chocolate Labrador puppy sleeping in the bottom of the box. 

“Great. It wasn’t enough chaos with the kids.” Skye commented as he gently lifted the puppy out of the box. Watching him it was easy to see he was already besotted. Waking up the puppy gently pressed kisses against Grant’s face before sniffing Skye and nuzzling her cheek.   
“Puppy!” Phil cried running his hands through the soft fur.   
“He’s not sharing the bed.” Skye warned as Grant kept staring at the puppy in wonder.   
******************************************* 

A little while later with the kids busy playing with their toys and the adults sorting the food, Skye snuck out back to their floor.   
“Jarvis.”  
“Yes miss Skye?”  
“Did Grant leave something down here for me?”  
“I believe he left something at the end of the corridor. I believe that was what he meant by his note.”  
“Thank you.”

Beside a vase of flowers she found a small box. Unwrapping it she found a beautiful butterfly necklace with light blue and purple stones. A pair of hands came into view and gently lifted the necklace, placing it around her neck.   
“Merry Christmas Skye.”  
“Merry Christmas Grant.” She turned to smile at him as the puppy gambled around their feet.   
“Mistletoe.” He muttered catching sight of something above her head.  
“I swear that wasn’t there before.” She grumbled.  
“Tony.”  
“Oh well. Might as well take advantage.”  
Before he could respond she pulled him down for a kiss.  
***********************************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ll be back with a chapter before New Year. All that’s left to say is Merry Christmas.


	33. Chapter 33

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To the guest who asked for the kids to burry Grant, I promise I will do it in a couple of chapters. If I forget please remind me!

Christmas day had ended with everyone in a food coma. Everyone had ended up lounging around on the sofa’s watching TV. Skye had ordered more dog items, which Fury had forgotten to buy for the new puppy. For all she’d said the puppy wouldn’t be in the bed with them it didn’t turn out to be true. The next morning she woke up to find Grant facing away from her, cuddling the puppy instead of her. She was slightly put out as it kept happening every morning. She’d got used to being cuddle by her warm SO, which was even better as he normally wasn’t wearing a t-shirt. Pouting slightly one night when she woke to find him not cuddling her again she found the puppy on the floor staring up at her. With a sigh of defeat she lifted the puppy in beside her allowing it to snuggle against her stomach. The next morning when she woke she found Grant had cuddled her again, arm around her waist with his hand on the puppy’s head. With a grin she moved closer to him, tangling her legs with his and went back to sleep until the children came to get them. 

The puppy still didn’t have a name. The kids had all made suggestions, even starting a fight at one point.  
“The puppy needs a name.” Tony told the kids, retreating knowing he was about to cause chaos and before Skye could kill him.  
“Cookie?” Phil suggested, waving his cookie monster toy.  
“Is it a boy or girl? We need to know if we’re going to name it.” Jemma added.  
“Girl.” Grant added watching the kids distractedly as he tried to get the puppy to drop what she was carrying. From the glint of silver she suspected it was the arrow bracelet Clint had got Nat for Christmas.   
“Cookie.”  
“No Phil that’s stupid. It should be Marie. Like Marie Curie.” Jemma announced a gleam in her eyes not noticing Phil’s eyes had filled with tears. Outraged Mel squirted her with the fake camera Clint had managed to sneak to her, leaving her spluttering.  
“Don’t make Phil cry! Cookie isn’t a stupid name. How about Lola?”  
Phil stopped crying momentarily to nod in agreement.   
“That’s nearly as stupid as Cookie!” Jemma scoffed as Phil began to cry again. 

Having eventually swapped the bracelet for a pair of his socks Grant hurried over and tried to comfort Phil.  
“Enough Jemma! Don’t upset your brother. Mel! Don’t spray Jemma again.”  
“She was being mean.”  
“But you don’t retaliate.”  
“Fine. Still should be called Marie!”  
“No. She should be called Bacon.” Leo added.  
“What?”  
“What? I like Bacon and I like the Puppy. Why not?”  
“Because it’s stupid.” Jemma stamped her foot in exasperation.  
“I have to agree.” Tripp spoke over the increasing argument between Jemma and Leo. Phil’s wails didn’t make it any easier to hear him. “She should be called Adele.”  
“Adele?”  
“She’s a good singer!”  
“The puppy can’t be named after a singer!”  
“Why not? It’s better than a fuddy scientist or food item”  
“Marie wasn’t a fuddy scientist. She is an undervalued scientist because she was a woman.”  
“Hey I chose a well known woman.”  
“There is nothing with naming the dog bacon.”

“I’m going to kill Tony.” Skye and Grant muttered in unison, grinning at each other slightly when they noticed. As Grant was trying to calm a wailing Phil Skye went to sort out the fighting group. Scoping up Mel and pushing her towards Nat who was watching the fight with interest she stepped in between Jemma and Leo who’d begun to pull each other’s hair.   
“Enough! Tripp you should know better. I want you to go and help Pepper set up for the party. Mel you’re to go with Nat and wash the dishes.”  
“But mum…”  
“No buts. You need to learn not to be mean to your brothers and sisters. If you don’t do it you won’t be going to the party.”  
“Fine.”  
“Fine.”  
“And you two. Go to your rooms! Jarvis make sure they’d don’t play with any of their toys.”  
“Yes mam.”  
“You two are to think about what you’ve said and done. I want you to write down what you did and what you should’ve done.”

All the kids stomped off, unhappy with their punishment but not wanting to risk not being able to go to the party. That just left a screaming Phil.  
“Way to go mum! Laying down the law.” Grant teased as he tried to stop the bawling.   
“Yeah you were no help! Give him here.” As she headed for the lift with Phil he watched in confusion before following behind curiously, the puppy dropping the socks and bounding after them. Stopping at the floor holding Tony’s workshop she wandered off, depositing a still crying Phil in Tony’s lap.  
“You caused it you can stop it.” She told the surprised man.  
Leaving him spluttering behind her she strode into the lift with a laughing Grant.  
“Nicely done.” He spluttered.  
“You really are no help. Why do I keep you around?”  
“Because I’m smart?”  
“Eh No.”  
“Because I’m good with kids?”  
“Well unless they’re fighting.”  
“Because I’m handsome?”  
“I can go with that.” She grinned cheekily at him, giggling as he pinned her against the wall and began kissing her. Wrapping her arms around his neck she pulled him closer only stopping when the lift came to a halt and the puppy began head butting them.   
“Save it for midnight cowboy.” She moved to get changed leaving him smiling like an idiot in the lift.  
************************************  
They’d gone for simple for the New Year’s party. As Steve had invited Bucky they’d decided against having their own fireworks, beside New York has enough fireworks. Tony had grumbled slightly but Pepper had stopped him after a few minutes. Phil was delighted when Bucky turned up, refusing to go to anyone else. Bucky was equally delighted. Grant suspected no one apart from Steve had been so happy to see him. The rest of the kids were still slightly annoyed at their parents for punishing them but it soon wore off when they realised they could stay up till midnight. 

Music blared out of speakers as Clint and Nat danced. Maria had pulled Fury onto the floor and made him dance while Bruce watched on. Jemma and Mel in sparkly dresses pulled him off his chair and persuaded him to dance. Much to Tony’s disgust Tripp had persuaded Pepper to dance. Leo had crawled into Steve’s lap and was allowing him and Thor to throw him around. Seeing Skye watching all of this in a beautiful purple halter neck dress Grant wandered over.   
“May I have this dance?”  
“I suppose so.” 

Placing her arms around his neck for the second time that day she flushed slightly at the look on his face, he clearly was remembering the last time she’d done that. Swaying gently together they ignored the wolf whistles that came from around the room. 

“Ok lovebirds. Sorry to break you up but if we want to see the fireworks we need to head outside.” Tony called.  
“Whom were you talking about?” Clint quipped. “The two snuggled together or the guy and your girlfriend?”  
Laughing Skye and Grant pulled apart, checking to make sure all their charges had been bundled up. Although beautiful, New York was cold. Having ensured everyone was suitably dressed they headed out on to the balcony.

Bruce had Mel on his hip while Fury had taken control of Jemma. Thor had sat Leo on his shoulders with Maria stood between him and Steve. Bucky still held Phil, and stood talking to Tripp. Tony stood with Pepper cuddled into him, waiting for the ball to drop. Joining them Grant slowly wrapped his arms around Skye, so she could stop him if she didn’t want it. Noticing what he was doing she grabbed his wrists and pulled his arms tighter around her. Smiling she watched as the ball began to descend.

5\. 4. 3. 2. 1.

“Happy New Year!” Everyone yelled as the fireworks began overhead. Turning slightly Skye lent up and pressed a kiss against Grant’s lips, keeping it quick due to the audience.   
“Happy New Year mum. Happy New Year dad.” Detangling herself from Grant they both proceeded to kiss everyone. Clint gave Grant a sudden grin before dipping Skye and kissing her. Rolling his eyes Grant ignored the blatant attempt to wind him up, dropping a kiss on Pepper’s cheek. A robot came trundling out carrying glasses of champagne for the adults and sparkling grape juice for kids.   
“A quick toast. To a fantastic New Year!”  
Repeating the toast Grant caught Skye’s eye and grinned. It was definitely going to be a fantastic New Year!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *************************************
> 
> Ok so the Puppy still doesn’t have a name. Here are the choices:  
> 1\. Nala  
> 2\. Roxy  
> 3\. Willow   
> 4\. Taffy  
> 5\. Mia  
> 6\. Choco  
> The name that gets the most votes will be used for the Puppy. So comment and let me know which you want it to be. Finally it’s not New Year here yet but where ever you are and whatever it becomes Jan 1st Happy New Year! I hope it’s a good one for everyone.


	34. Chapter 34

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who voted. You’ll see the result in the chapter.

*************************  
“Why is everything so bright?” Groaned Clint, as he stumbled into the living room where everyone had congregated. His eyes half closed he went and slumped against Nat, curling his body into hers wincing as Leo and Jemma squealed at reaching a new level in their game. Skye would have laughed at the pitiful figure if she didn’t feel the same way. Last night had been amazing. Having watched the fireworks the celebration had continued with Thor dragging out a drink from Asguard. He’d refused to tell them what was in it. After one drink they’d didn’t care, after two they would have happily helped make it. Unfortunately it had left them all with horrible hangovers this morning. Hence why everyone was huddled together watching the children, Thor being the only person who didn’t seem to be suffering. Even Fury had looked unwell when he’d left the Tower this morning; he’d been overheard ordering staff to ensure quiet around his office for the day. Anyone making noise would be fired. 

Naturally the kids were oblivious to the adults’ plight. They’d slept late but were now wide-awake and in need of entertaining. As no one was up to doing that Skye had put on a video game for them all to play, The Lego movie game, something they could all take turns playing. Although Phil was a little young he sat watching the others, the puppy cuddled in beside him. Only Tripp wasn’t playing, he’d preferred to read a book. Happy the kids were occupied Skye cringed into Grant’s side, knowing he was close making things slightly better.

“It doesn’t work.” Leo complained as he got stuck at one point on a level.  
“Here. Let me have a go.” Tripp grinned, the only warning she got.  
Suddenly the volume of the game turned right up, naturally occurring as explosions occurred in the game. As one the adult shuddered, clutching their heads in pain. Grinning evilly Tripp turned to Leo.  
“If you hold that button Unikitty performs attacks with fireworks. Gives off a lot of bangs.”  
“Awesome!”  
“Why are our children so evil?” Grant groaned, trying to curl up on himself.  
“I blame Fury. He’s secretly being turning them against us.”  
As another explosion shot through the room, Thor began to laugh, a beep bellowing laugh that filled the room and made your head pound.   
“I like this Unikitty. What else can she do little one?”  
“She builds things with rainbows!” Normally Skye would find Leo’s enthusiasm endearing but today all she wanted was quiet.  
“We have a rainbow bridge though it was not build by any kitty.”  
“Look you can destroy everything!”  
“Leo please! I beg you, turn it down.” Clint pleaded weakly. “I will do anything!”   
“What’s the matter Uncle Clint?” Tripp asked innocently as he began teasing the puppy. He knew exactly what was going on, the rotter.  
“Please stop the noise!”  
“This is normal level!” Tripp commented as he moved the toy out of the reach of the puppy. Getting annoyed the puppy began barking, adding to the noise levels in the room.  
“Oh great.” Clint groaned, trying to burry his head in a cushion.

“Nala! Shush!” Grant ordered, watching as the puppy immediately stopped barking.  
“Nala? You named her?” Skye asked in surprise. The last time they’d mentioned it he still wasn’t sure what to call her.  
“Nala’s a lion.” Mel interjected, climbing up beside them as she talked to them.  
“Sorry Mel?” Grant looked totally puzzled.  
“A lioness.” Jemma interjected turning away from the game momentarily. “Nala is a lioness.”  
“Lion. Lioness. What does it matter? It’s the same thing.”  
“I still don’t get it.” He looked at her in confusion and Skye felt a pang in her chest. He clearly didn’t have a clue what the girls were on about.  
“From the lion king dad. Nala is from that.” Mel explained.  
“It’s a Disney film.” Skye whispered when it was clear Grant still didn’t understand. Speaking louder. “I like the name.”  
“I’m just glad you named her. We couldn’t keep calling her puppy.” Tony grumped from a corner. Rolling her eyes Skye ignored him processing what she’d just found out. She knew Grant hadn’t had a good childhood but she’d assumed that he would know about Disney films. She would just have to find a way to get him to catch up. It was amazing what you could get away with by pretending it was something for the kids. Plans made she snuggled back down on the sofa, the puppy joining them along with Mel, and closed her eyes. Maybe she would be lucky and get a few more hours sleep.

They spent the rest of the week exploring New York, doing the touristy things. Skye had never been to New York and Grant had only been there for work. They’d spent the days wandering around the city, occasionally having a picnic in central park even though it was freezing. Pepper took some time off to do the site seeing with them, showing Skye all the best places to go shopping.  
*************************  
“How’re we doing Leo?” Mel whispered as she snuck forward to where he was balancing on Tripp’s shoulders. It had been a week since the party and they were soon returning home but there was one final thing they had to do. With the help of Jarvis they’d all gotten up early this morning wanting to beat their parents up.

“Nearly there.”  
“Good. For someone small you’re quiet heavy!” Tripp complained as Leo wobbled on his shoulders.   
“Shhhh. If you wake dad” She trailed off menacingly.   
“Fine! Go and check on Jemma.” Tripp hissed as a roll of paper dropped on his head, followed by a blob of glue.  
“Oops.” Leo winced.  
Leaving the boys to finish she headed over to Jemma where she saw everything was in hand.   
“Is it done?”   
“Yes. Jarvis had to help with the complicated bits… well most of it. I decorated it though.”  
“Miss Simmons did a fantastic job miss May.”  
“Looks good.”  
“Ah miss May you’re about to get…”  
“What the hell are you doing?!” Spinning she found grandpa exiting the lift, Jarvis’ warning becoming clear.  
“Grandpa shush! You’ll wake the others!” Mel demanded, ignoring his evil stare. He didn’t scare her; she knew he was a push over. Beside if he didn’t she knew his weakness; Phil was nearby enough to be used.

“Melinda. Why is there paper hung on the ceiling?”  
“They’re streamers.”  
“Streamers! Streamers. Why the hell…”  
“Language Director Fury. Remember they are children.”  
Fury pinched the bridge of his nose before continuing.   
“Why streamers?”  
“And banners.” Tripp peeped up, shutting up when she glared at him again.  
“It’s for dad.”  
“Why has your dad got you putting streamers and banners up?”  
“He hasn’t. We did it for him.” She stamped her foot, why didn’t he get it? “It’s for his birthday.”  
“Ok?”  
“It is Agent Ward day of birth today.” Thor announced from the kitchen where he’d been feeding Phil.  
“I got that Thor.”  
“The children wished to celebrate it.”  
“And you helped?”  
“We didn’t ask him for help. He found out when Phil escaped to his floor. I wasn’t quick enough to catch him.”  
“Fine. No more banners though. It looks like a paper factory exploded in here.”  
Grandpa left shaking his head and muttering, leaving Mel grinning behind. She knew he wouldn’t do anything.

“Miss May. They’re on their way.”  
“Thank you Jarvis. Everyone ready?”   
Nods from everyone made her grin as they all quickly hid, Thor having the most difficulty due to his size.  
“Jarvis! Lights!”  
Just before the lift doors opened the room fell into silence. From her position she could see into the lift, both her parent’s faces were lit with confusion.   
“What happened to the lights?” Mum asked as they both walked into the room.  
“Surprise!” They all yelled, jumping out of their hiding places as Jarvis switched the lights back on. “Happy birthday!”  
Dad looked around in surprise, taking in their decorations and the small pile of presents nearby. Next to them sat a small cake Jemma and Jarvis had made with several mugs of coffee and a huge pile of pancakes.  
“You did all this?” He sounded like he’d got something caught in this throat.  
“Yeah we got to together to do it.”  
“Thank you.” He pulled them all into a quick hug.  
“Come and open your presents.”  
***********  
They managed to crowd all onto one sofa with mum next to dad and Jemma on her lap. She sat on Tripp’s lap on dad’s other side with Leo sat beside Tripp’s shoulders. Phil cuddled in between Mel and Dad, half lying on them. Thor sat on the floor and took over the duty of passing the presents. Quickly a dog t-shirt (Phil), the articulate game (Leo), Licence to grill apron (Tripp), A home is not a home without a dog sign (Jemma) and bullet cufflinks (Mel) were unwrapped. Skye promised to give him his present later. As they tucked into the pancakes the others joined them and handed over their presents. Bruce had given him a new stress ball and a brew your own beer set, Tony had created a new gun for him, something Pepper scolded him for. Nat had bought him a knife set that could be used in the kitchen and on a person if necessary. Clint provided a guide to getting slim by having sex, causing Skye to choke when she caught sight of the title. Ward rolled his eyes at that and hid it away before the kids could see it. Pepper provided several new books while Thor’s was the recipe for the drink from New Year.   
**********  
They spent the rest of the day playing games before mum and dad disappeared to get ready. They were going out for a meal so they were staying with Uncle Tony.   
“Mummy you look beautiful.” Jemma commented as she walked into the room wearing a short purple halter neck dress.  
“Thank you. Now you’re all going to be good for Uncle Tony and Steve.”  
Everyone nodded and waited until she’d left before pulling out the things they’d been hiding behind their backs.  
“Oh good she’s gone. We’d never got away with that if your dad was here. Now who want’s to fly?”

Half an hour later and they’d destroyed two windows when Tripp had accidently fired the blaster and Leo and Jemma had got into the lab. A small fire had started, which was fortunately put out by Bruce on his way past. Steve had spent his time doing push ups with Mel sat on his back. Having tidied up the mess from the shattered windows and gathered the group back together they soon found nobody had seen Phil for a while. A panic search eventually found him giggling as he used Bucky as a climbing frame in the TV room.   
“Oh thank god. I didn’t want to explain to anyone I’d lost him.” Tony slumped against the wall.  
“I dropped by and found him near the front doors. I was going to bring him back but he started climbing me. I didn’t want to drop him, besides he seems happy.”  
“No one tell your parents.”  
“What will you give us?” Mel grinned.  
“I’m sure I’ll think of something.” Mel turned and grinned at Tripp. Who knew what they could get out of him for this?  
*************************************  
“This is nice.” Skye looked around as Grant pushed in the chair for her.  
“Tony organised it.”  
“I’m sure it will be great.”  
“Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?” He smiled gently at her taking her hand. Looking down as she blushed before smiling gently at him.  
“Thank you.” Lifting her hand he placed a gentle kiss on the top before accepting a menu from the waiter. 

They chatted as they waited for food, deciding against starters and moving straight to mains. The restaurant had a romantic feel, with gentle lighting and small tables. Her bare legs kept brushing up against his. The wine he’d chosen helped her relax as they waited for the food to come. 

“This is amazing.” She mumbled around the duck she’d chosen.  
“Try this.” He offered her a small amount of steak, leaning over to fed it her. Grabbing his napkin he wiped a small drop of sauce off her lip.  
“That’s good but I think I prefer the duck. Here try it.” Two could play this game. Holding out her fork, she kept it away from him until he leant in so she could feed him. Grinning impishly she allowed him to taste the duck, laughing slightly as he savoured the food. 

Laughing they avoided talking about their jobs, just enjoying each other’s company. Grant began laughing as the deserts were delivered; Skye never took her eyes off her chocolate fudge cake.  
“Shall I leave you alone with that?” He teased.  
“Please. We’re in love.” She grinned. Laughing at her he grabbed his phone before starting on his cheesecake.   
“God I’m stuffed.” She moaned.  
“I think you missed a bit.” With eyes wide she watched as he lent forward and wiped a small smudge of chocolate from her lip. Keeping his eyes on hers he slowly raised his thumb to his mouth, sucking off the chocolate.  
“You don’t play fair.”  
“I’m not playing.”  
She watched him, seeing the emotion in his eyes.   
“Shall we go?” She stood offering him her hand. Pressing a kiss to each of her fingers he stood and interlinked their hands.  
“Sure. Let’s go.”  
****************************  
Sneaking back into the tower they stopped off in the living room to grab some wine from the liquor cabinet. They both stopped short as they spotted the bodies sprawled around the room.  
“What?”  
“I think they passed out a few hours ago. I found them like this when I got.” Nat moved in from the kitchen. “Don’t worry I’ll ensure the kids get to bed.”  
“Thanks Nat.” Skye grabbed a bottle of wine and headed back towards the lift, smiling down at the sleeping kids as she left.  
“I’ll just grab some glasses.” Grant smiled at her as he watched Nat knowing she wanted to talk. “Everything ok?” He asked once Skye had gone.

“Yeah. Just so you know several windows got broken and there was a small fire.”  
“What?”  
“I just wanted you to know before the morning.”  
“Thanks. How did you find out?”  
“Watched the security footage. I always review it when I’m here. You wouldn’t believe the things you see.” She grinned suggestively at him; it took all his training not to blush. Laughing she strode away from him to place a pillow behind Steve’s head.   
“Now go and join Skye and finish off your birthday.”  
“Thanks Nat.” He ignored the suggestive tone. Grinning at him over her shoulder she gave him a parting comment.  
“Enjoy the rest of the night. Just remember the walls aren’t sound proofed.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry this took a while. It should have gone up last week but once again I was poorly. I will admit I hadn’t remembered that Nala was from the Lion King. I just liked the name. I haven’t seen the film for a few years.


	35. Chapter 35

Going home the day after Grant’s birthday may have been a mistake. Not that they’d drank much, just enough that she wasn’t prepared to deal with screaming kids. Tony had offered to let them stay long; he’d loved having the kids around. But it was definitely time to leave. Before the entire building ended up being blown up. Tony had no idea how to deal with children, actively encourage Leo and Jemma to make bigger explosions. Tripp had begun to pick up some of Clint’s language and Mel was taking way too much interest in Steve’s fight classes. Worse thing was Nat’s interest in her and Grant’s relationship. It wasn’t something she wanted to share just yet, not being entirely sure where it was going herself. The kids were the most important things in their lives right now but as Pepper pointed out it wasn’t as if she could just put her life on hold. 

That was why she was trying to wrestle a screaming Mel into the car. She’d thrown a tantrum upon hearing that they were leaving this morning.   
“Why did I get stuck with this job?” She mumbled as she eventually strapped Mel into the car. Blowing out a breath she pulled her hair into some sort of semblance ignoring the screeching that was still coming from the car.  
“Someone isn’t happy.” Steve commented as he moved to hug her.  
“They don’t want to leave.”  
“You know we’ll visit?”  
“You’ll be welcome at anytime.”  
“You just want to get back to your home comforts?” Steve grinned, his eyes seeming to see straight through her excuses.  
“Yeah. As much as I loved it here that little house…”  
“Has become your home. I understand. Don’t worry Tony will get over his sulk. He usually does.”  
“I heard that.” Scowling Tony poke Steve with a metal rod, laughing when he jumped. “I still don’t understand how a small house can beat this but if you’re determined to go.”  
“Thanks Tony.”  
“Just make sure you let me know if you ever need any help hacking Shield.”  
“I think I’ll manage.”

“Ready to go?” The door opened as Grant poked his head outside before dragging along a protesting Tripp, the last child to be thrown in the car.   
“Sure. Let’s go before one makes a bid for freedom.” Skye grinned before kissing both men of the cheeks, laughing as Tony flushed. “Thank you for a memorable holiday.” Waving she slid into the car, waving as Grant manoeuvred his way into the New York traffic jamb.   
“Ready to go home?” It was hard to hear him over the screaming from the back but she would swear he sounded relieved.  
“Yep.” Reaching for the radio she tuned it to a heavy rock station, not because she particularly liked the music more in the hope that it might drown out the noise from the back.  
*************************************

Blinking slowly the world came into focus. Glancing at the clock through blurred eyes she found she’d been asleep for about an hour. Something had woken her up. Stretching she glanced behind, finding the happy sight of all the children fast asleep. Mel’s head lay on Leo while Jemma held onto one of Phil’s pudgy little fists. It looked the perfect picture moment but what had woken her? 

Scanning the road ahead as he’d been taught there wasn’t anything that would constitute a threat. Turning to the man beside her she took in his posture. One arm gripping the steering wheel, the other relaxing on the armrest on the door, his eyes darting between the mirror and the road. If she didn’t know him well she would have missed the slight tensing of his fingers, gripping the wheel tighter than normal.  
“Ward?”  
“We’re being followed.”   
“Where?”  
“Behind the lorry, blue car.” Under the pretence of checking on the children she snuck a glance out of the back window.  
“Got it. Plan?” There was no point worrying why they were following them or how they’d found them until they’d got rid of them.  
“I’m going to do some creative driving. Hold on.” Grimacing slightly he pulled the car across three lanes cutting up several cars. Behind them the blue car followed clearly loosing any pretence of hiding. Speeding up they were practically driving up their bumper. Swearing Ward yanked the car at a right angle taking an alley Skye wasn’t sure the car would fit down. At least she now had the answer to what had woken her up. Clinging to the door handle she watched wide eyes as Ward pulled them through a series of harrowing turns to no avail. 

“This isn’t working.” She added as if she was driven around a city like a maniac everyday of her life.  
“They’re professionals.” He made it sound as if he was commenting on the colour of the sky. “I’m not going to be able to shake them.”  
“So?” Glancing at the children she found they were still asleep thankfully.   
“I have a plan.” He glanced quickly at her making her stomach drop, before he reached for a button on the dashboard.   
“Missing us already?” Tony’s voice came through the speakers.  
“We’re being followed.” Ward explained tersely.  
“I’ll track you. What do you need?” Tony immediately became serious, the clack of keys signalling he was already working.   
“I need you to be eyes.”  
“Done.”  
“Skye take the wheel.”  
“What?” Her voice raised several octaves.   
“I need you to take the wheel. It will accelerate you just need to steer.” He replied as he lowered the window.  
“And if I need to brake?”  
“I’ll do it. I’ve hacked into the car’s automatic drive. All you need to do is steer.”  
“Good.” Unbuttoning his seatbelt he began clambering from the car.  
“Grant!” She yelled, surging forward to grab the wheel. “GRANT DOUGLAS WARD.” She yelled out of the window as he gave her a grin. She wasn’t sure whether to slap him or kiss him.  
“Oooh full name.” Tony laughed, unable to stay serious for too long.  
“What the hell do I do?”  
“Just keep it going straight. Try not to make any sharp turns.” Clint’s calm voice spoke. “If you make any sharp turns and you’re likely to throw him off the top. I did that to Nat once. It didn’t end well for me.”  
“Oh great.”  
“Don’t worry you’ll be fine. We’ve got your back. Turn right here.”  
“What about him? He doesn’t have anyone watching his back.” She kept her voice low as not to wake the kids.   
“Nat’s doing that. We’ve got you Skye.”  
“How the hell is he standing on top of the roof?” She muttered more to herself as she negotiated around a slow moving car.  
“Training.”  
“Why does that not surprise me?” Ignoring the bangs coming from above them. Glancing in the mirror she saw that the shots had made very little difference to the car. 

“Mummy?”  
“Shush it’s alright Phil go back to sleep.” She soothed trying to ignore the fact she was straining trying to keep the car on track without dislocating something.  
“Ok.” The little voice sound on the verge of sleep already, something she was grateful for. She didn’t want any of them seeing this.  
“Shit!” She swerved around a slow merging car feeling Tony begin breaking for her, hoping Phil had already fallen asleep. She didn’t want him picking up bad language. A strangle cry came from above, the only warning she got as Ward was thrown forward, grabbing a hold of the windscreen wipers to prevent him flying off completely.   
‘I’m sorry.’ She mouthed as he glared at her, reaching for the top of the roof.  
“Tony I’m driving blind!”  
“How?”  
“Because Grant’s blocking the windscreen!”  
“Oh. Turn right. You’re about to run into a lorry and squash the only chance you have off hitting that ass.”  
“Tony!”  
“By that ass I’m on about the one blocking your view currently.”  
“Thank you for that! Remember the children.”  
“They’re asleep. Cameras in the car remember? Interesting no denial or have you already hit that?”  
“I’m kind of busy!”  
“All you need to do is steer the car. Surely you can answer a question. It would explain why he’s been happier recently.”  
“Tony!”  
“What? You can see now. I know he’s back on top.” She could practically see him grinning gleeful at her. “You may want to move by the way.”

Frowning she shifted slightly as Ward slipped back into his seat.  
“You’re insane.”  
“You knew that already.” He grinned boyishly at her. Had he enjoyed that?  
“The car behind us?”  
“About to be a problem no more.” Turning, she moved in time to see a wheel blow sending the car spinning out of control.  
“Hit a tire. Didn’t want to be on the floor in case any debris came flying off.”  
“Well now that excitement is over I’m going back to sleep.”   
***************************  
By time they arrived back it was nearly dark and the kids were bored. They stopped for food and a break. Thankfully since the events earlier everything had been quiet but Skye had resolved to be more aware from now on. Picking up a giggling Phil she turned to find herself face to face with Bucky.  
“Bucky!”  
“Sorry to scare you. I just wanted to assure you that you’re safe. Steve contacted me. I caught up with you and made sure you weren’t followed. I’ll keep an eye on the house for a bit.” With that he disappeared.  
“Wait! Bucky!”   
“Bucky.” Phil cried sadly.  
“I know Phil. Hopefully we’ll see him soon. Now come on let’s give you a bath.”


	36. Chapter 36

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is for the guest who suggested the idea for this chapter

Lying back he can’t help but smile as he watches everyone around him. It’s the most relaxed he’s seen Skye since they were at the Avengers’ tower. Both of them had been nervous ever since they’d been followed home. The knowledge of Bucky being around was slightly reassuring but he was still jumpy. It was one of the reasons he’d suggested this trip. The kids were getting cranky being forced to stay inside all the time. He hadn’t wanted to go out to any of the normal playgroups they would attend in case they put any of the kids in danger. 

Slumping backwards he felt his muscles relax as the wind ruffled his hair. He was aware of the padding of feet nearby, the length of strides telling him it was Jemma and Mel trying to sneak up on him. Rather than ruin their fun, he kept his eyes closed, waiting to see what they would do to him. He knew there was no danger at the moment, the beach being fairly empty due to most kids being in school. It was one of the reasons he’d suggested the trip here. It would be quiet plus the kids had plenty of room to run free with little to threaten them. Leo had been planning a game of Rounders with Tripp, as there would be enough room on the beach. Mel had been unsure to begin with until Jemma had explained it was similar to Baseball. As Phil was too small the kids had decided that he and Skye could be cheerleaders while he refereed the game. Though that might be fun, Tripp and Mel were extremely competitive and when on different teams spent all their time trying to wind the other up. He had a bit of relief before that though, Skye deciding it was a good idea to get lunch out of the way before the game otherwise they were likely to have a food fight on their hands.

Grinning at the thought, he was distracted enough that he wasn’t prepared for the sand that was dumped upon him.  
“Burry Dad!” Yelled Mel right next to his ear, making him flinch away.  
Craftily Jemma dumped Phil on his chest knowing he wouldn’t move away with him sat on his chest. Working together, Leo and Tripp buried his legs while Jemma and Mel concentrated on his arms. Skye sat beside his head brushing away any sand that got too near his eyes and occasionally being dispatched to collect water for the children.  
“You’re no help.” He grumped as she returned with another bucket full of cold seawater that got dumped straight on his crotch, sending him jumping to the kids delight.  
“What can I say? It’s nice to see you pinned down for once.” He watched as she loomed over him, her hair tickling his face, mimicking the position he’d take so many times when training her.   
“You like being above me?”  
“It makes a change. Plus it has so many opportunities for me.” Gently she ran her fingers across his face before bringing her face close to his, nearly touching him. A wicked smirk crossed her face before she lifted Phil off his chest, cuddling him close to her.  
“I think it’s time to cover his chest now.” She informed the children.  
“You’re evil.” He muttered as another cascade of water covered him, soaking through the sand and onto his shirt.  
“You’ve only just noticed? And here was I thinking you were a superspy robot. I’ve been misled!”  
Laughing he watched with delight as her face lit up, the frown lines disappearing. With the recent threat she’d been less bubbly than normal, his rookie disappearing piece by piece. He’d seen people loose themselves due to worry and hadn’t wanted that to happen to her. At least the trip had allowed her to begin to return to her normal self. He’d never admit it to her but he really loved her annoying rookie self, leaving some training sessions with sore ribs having spent all his time trying not to laugh to her more outrageous asides. Catching his eye she leant and placed a gentle kiss on his lips.   
********************************  
Leo wandered off towards the shoreline, a sandwich in his hand. He’d always loved the sea; it was so relaxing watching the waves bobbing up and down. Grabbing his Lillo he curled up on it letting the waves rock him. It felt like being on a rocking horse, gently swaying him. Yawning, he curled up in a ball, his eyes slowly drifting shut. 

Jerking awake a little while later he found himself nearly banging into the pier having drifted away from his original position. Sitting up he scanned the area, blood pounding in his ears.  
“Hey there little one. Are you alright?”  
Blinking up at the voice he found a grizzled bearded man peering down at him from his seat on the pier, fishing rod to the side of him.  
“I… I think I’m lost.” Leo wailed, breaking into sobs.  
“Hey now. Don’t worry. We’ll find your parents.” Gentle hands lifted him from the water setting him down on the wood. “When did you last see them?”  
“I don’t know. It could have been days ago!” Leo panicked, thinking of all the things that could have gone wrong. “They’ve forgotten me!”  
“I highly doubt they’ll have forgotten you.” The man chuckled. “Come on. We’ll go and find them.” Blinking up at the man Leo remember his Dad’s words not to trust anyone, strangers were dangers. Tentatively he reached out and took the man’s calloused hand, holding onto only the tips of his fingers. If in doubt he could run. Now on the pier he could see the road at the top of the beach. If he headed into town he could find a police station or even a phone. If they had forgotten him maybe he could get a hold of Auntie Nat. She would come for him, she’d said so. 

An increase in pressure on his hand made him look up.  
“I think someone’s trying to get your attention lad.” Nodding towards the end of the pier, Leo followed his gaze pulling away and running to the end.  
“Mummy!”  
“Leo.” As she scooped him up he clung to her, ignoring the fact that he was too big to be doing this now.  
“I thought you left me.” He began to cry.   
“We would never leave you.” Dad bent down so he was eye to eye with him. “I promise. We’d been watching you all the time. Tripp was about to go in and get you as you hit the pier. You just didn’t hear us calling.” Nodding Leo turned back to his mum burying his head in her neck. He felt slightly better hearing that, relaxing more when he felt Tripp’s hand on his back. Two hands gently took his, when he glanced up he saw Mel and Jemma smiling at him.  
“We won’t leave you silly.” Jemma promised.  
“No matter how much I want to.” Mel pouted. Leo watched as his dad laughing turned and thanked the man.  
“Now. I believe we have a game to start.”  
“Can I pick the teams?” Leo asked, his eyes fluttering at his mum.  
“Oh why not.” She laughed putting him down beside Jemma.   
******************************************

“Sir.” Glancing up from his computer Fury found his second in command waiting at the doorway.  
“Hill.” It was the only invitation she needed to come and sit.  
“The outing was a success.”  
“Any problems?”  
“Leo drifted off and frightened himself but at least two agents had him in sight at all time.”  
“Then why the visit?”   
“We’ve finally got a lead on the individuals that followed Skye and Ward home.”  
“Send a team.”  
“That’s the problem. The best are currently busy.”  
“Doing what? Drag them off whatever they’re doing. This is top priority.”  
“That’s the problem sir. If I do that we’ve got five kids running around unsupervised.” The slight movement of his eye patch was the only indication of his surprise.  
“So sir. How are you with kids?”  
**************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the bit with Leo was based off one of my favourite kids books that I adapted to fit here. My updates are going to be a bit erratic from now on I’m afraid. I’ve been trying to get a chapter up every week, though I’d always succeed. From now I’m getting the busiest part of my degree with loads of assignments and my masters project to write. So I’m sorry if I don’t get them up as frequently. I will try and keep to one chapter a week but it may not be possible. Sorry.


	37. Chapter 37

If she was honest she never expected the blanching on his cheeks. Shouting and demands yes, for him to go so quiet and thoughtfully had her reconsidering her plan.  
“Sir?” He was never quiet for long.   
“What do you mean Hill?”  
“Sir there is no one else available. You are the best person for the job.” Ignoring the well-deserved glare that statement received she ploughed on. “You ordered only trusted agents to look after the kids, unfortunately they’re all busy.”  
“You?”  
“Sir I have to leave after this meeting to go and chaperon Stark. Pepper has a meeting in Beijing so can’t accompany him. Unless you want me to leave him be?”  
“God no. If he isn’t watched we’ll have Budapest all over again. I do not want to have to send Barton and Romanoff to do clean up again! I never got any piece for months after the last time.”  
“I thought so sir but that leaves us out of agents.”  
“Barton? Romanoff?”  
“On a mission in the artic with Thor. Loki had been taking way too much interest in that area.”  
“Rogers?”  
“With Bucky. They’re going over the records from Director Carter’s store. They believe they might provide clues upon how to regain Bucky’s memories.”  
“Banner?”  
“With Pepper. It’s his invention that they’re presenting.”

She watched with astonishment as he put his head in his hands.   
“There is an advantage to this sir.” She began hesitantly.  
“Oh?”  
“The World Security Council has been insisting you take some leave. Apparently you haven’t taken time off in six years. By looking after the children not only do you free up Skye and Ward to undertake the mission you can get the Council off your back.”  
“You had this all planned didn’t you Hill?”  
“You employ me to solve problems. This was just a slightly different one than I normally deal with.”  
“Fine. Inform everybody. Anything urgent…”  
“They can reach you by usual methods. I will make the arrangements now.”

Before he had time to reconsider she swept out of the office, waiting till she was safely ensconced in her own office before letting the smile break across her face. Grabbing her phone she found a familiar number and dialled.   
“How quickly can you install cameras at Ward’s house Nat?”   
Just because it was the solution that made sense didn’t mean she wasn’t going to take advantage of it. You never know when you might need photos of your boss dealing with his ‘grandchildren’.  
****************************************

“So what exactly did Maria say?” Skye asked as she rummaged through her draws.  
“Just that we had a mission investigating the people who followed us. They’ve been linked to the team as well. We’ll be updated when we arrive at the Hub. Oh and Nat is coming around briefly but don’t tell anyone she was here.” He finished enigmatically, his voice muffled as he stepped into the cupboard.   
“What?” He frowned as he noticed her staring at him.  
“Nat?”  
“Oh I think Maria has a plan. Just remind me when we come home to make sure all the cameras have been removed. I wouldn’t put it past Nat to place a few in here. She’s always been nosy.” 

Continuing to pack Skye felt her cheeks heat up slightly, the implication of what Nat might find if the cameras were left in. Not that anything like that had happened, not yet. They both spent so much energy running around after the kids that most nights they collapsed in a heap on the bed, even Grant being too tired to move. Some nights it was amazing she managed to get out of her clothes and into PJs. 

“I’m sorry.” Jerking her head up she found Grant looking at her almost wistfully.   
“We have to go on a mission. That’s not your fault. Besides Fury will be more than capable of looking after them.” She paused slightly wondering if he truly knew what he was getting into. Once they returned she might have to hack into the video feed to see how much chaos the kids had caused. Her mood lifting at the thought she found Grant still frowning at her.   
“What?” She asked, resisting the urge to run her hands down her body. Had she forgotten something? Sure she’d packed her cowl and mission suit, not needing it till later. So she was wearing a plaid shirt and jeans but so was he. They could both change into the shield appropriate suit just before they arrived at the Hub.

“Not about that. About today.”  
“Today?” It was Friday, nothing special.  
“Valentines day.” The quietness of his voice as much as what he said had her blinking in shock. He seemed shy, unsure, like he’d never done anything like this before. Cursing to herself, she realised her mistake. Of course he hadn’t. From his files she knew he’d never had a normal childhood, hell or a normal adulthood. It was only recently with him joining the team he had found how most adults lived. It broke her heart to release that the only relationships he’d ever had were due to missions.  
“Grant?” She knew there was more he had to say, waiting for him to say it in his own time.   
“I…I wanted to do something. So I organised Pepper and Bruce to watch the kids so we could go out for a meal. But that’s no longer possible.”  
“You arrange all of that?”  
He nodded looking down at the floor.   
“I didn’t get you anything as I wasn’t sure you’d want to celebrate it but I wanted to do something.”   
Moving to his side she stretched up, kissing him on the cheek until he looked at her, allowing her to press a gentle kiss on his lips.   
“That’s one of the nicest things anyone has done.” Wrapping her arms around him tightly she nuzzled her head against his chest. “We’ll do it after we’ve completed this mission. And you didn’t need to buy me anything. It would’ve just been nice spending time with you.” Sliding her hands up and down his back she felt the muscles slowly relax as his face pressed against his hair.

“Mum.” Turning she found Mel hesitating at the doorway. “You’re not just going out with dad tonight are you?” Catching Grant’s eye she beckoned the young girl in gathering her up on the bed.   
“They wanted to make sure I did something. Just be glad I didn’t let them plan it.” He muttered as he moved back to packing.  
“No we’re not. We have to go away for a while. Like Dad did.”  
“How long?”  
“I’m not sure. But your grandpa is going to stay with you while we’re away.”  
“Grandpa’s coming! Wait till Tripp hears.” Leaping from the bed she ran out of the room bellowing downstairs. Cheers erupted from downstairs.  
“I think the kids are happy.”  
Laughing Grant continued throwing things into a bag.   
“They think they’re going to have it easy with Grandpa. I almost wish I was around to see it.”  
“I think I can manage to hack the video feed.” His answering grin was all the approval she needed.  
********************************  
“So grandpa is coming?” Tripp balanced Mel on his shoulders as she wobbled. “Make sure you get the cookies for Phil.”  
“I know. And it’s what Mum said. Here catch.”   
There was a small thud as what ever she’d grabbed hit the floor.  
“I thought I said catch.”  
“If I tried to catch it you’d have fallen. I’d rather not explain why you ended up in a heap on the floor!”   
“As if I’d fall. Besides I know how to land.”  
“Well miss fancy pants. Hurry up otherwise we’ll get to test your landing skills. It’s every man for themselves if mum or dad come.”  
“Shush. I’m nearly done. OK lower me.”   
Reaching up he grasped her around her waist and lowered her gently to the ground. Taking the chocolate biscuits she offered him he scooped up the cookies for Phil.  
“It was nice doing business with you.”  
Gathering their ill-gotten good they headed towards the others.  
“Tripp. Do you think we’ll be able to persuade Grandpa to give us ice-cream?”  
“I’m sure we can come up with a plan. Besides he can’t say no to Phil.”  
Pausing he considered that. “You know I think we can use


	38. Chapter 38

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay. I’ve finally got my act together and got this written. Just a warning there is some mention of violence at the end of this chapter.

They landed with a quiet thump, silently disconnecting themselves from the ropes. Keeping low to the ground they used the trees as cover. Pausing, they noted the passing of the guards, watching their patterns, noting their behaviours. As soon as they had the pattern down it would be safe to move forward. The coms they had would pick up the smallest whisperers so they could plan without alerting the others. The simplest plan was the best, divide and conquer. After the next passing of the guard, they crept towards the target, guns armed and ready. They were two meters away from the target when everything went to wrong. A guard deviated from their pattern, rounding the corner taking the team by surprise. He watched as the guard moved in on his partner, no time to give a warning. He watched in horror as he loomed over her. Sensing danger she whirled around, silently pinning him to the ground, taking him out. Clearly the lessons had worked, it was beautifully executed.

Sending her a swift grin that was just visible beneath his balaclava he continued moving forward. As she watched his back he was free to pick the lock, gaining them entry into the target. 200m down the hallway and they reached their target. Gun raised they entered the room, each surrounding the target.  
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” A voice yelled from behind them, sending him jumping.  
“Grandpa.” Tripp turned, hiding the water gun behind his back. Trying to school his face, he caught sight of Mel looking at the ground, her gun on the floor.   
“Well?”  
“We’re playing secret agents.”  
“Yes and that’s why Leo is crying!”  
“I may have put him down a bit too hard.” Mel murmured, glancing down at the floor. “Is he alright?”  
“He’s got a sprained wrist.” He looked down at them and Tripp felt his heart pound. Heat rushed to his checks. “You need to remember that they haven’t learned what you did.”  
“I’m sorry.” Mel wailed.   
“Just go and apologise.” Grabbing her small hand he headed for the door.  
“Oh and if I ever find you pointing a gun at your brother again…” Tripp shuddered at the menacing look on his face.  
“No Grandpa.” They both chorused as they rushed out of the room. 

Curled on one of the sofa’s they found Leo cradling a bandaged wrist, red puffy eyes. Hearing their approach he glanced up, breaking into a smile.   
“Did it work?”   
“Well he doesn’t suspect anything.” Tripp shrugged. “How’s your wrist?”  
“A bit sore.”  
“Sorry.” Mel slid beside him, rubbing her hand carefully along the bandage.   
“I told you to throw me properly. It’s not your fault I landed weirdly.”  
“But still I didn’t mean for you to get hurt.”  
“Forget about it. Besides I got ice cream.” He grinned wickedly.  
“Come on. We’d better find our how Jemma’s getting on. Phil will keep Grandpa busy for a little while longer.”  
*************************************  
Turning and taking in the room, he sighed. When he’d arrived it had been a living room, a few toys scattered around. Now it resembled a bombsite. Chairs were over turned; food thrown across the floor, he’d turned his back for one moment and then found Phil drawing on the wall. Before his agents got back he was going to have to ensure the room had been redecorated, he didn’t want to explain why there was a red snowman covering half the wall. If it was anyone else he would have glared them into submission, he’d managed to stop wars with that glare. But kids? Kids, you can’t glare at. Especially not toddlers. Parents gone two hours and they’d nearly killed each other. Sure they were kids who used to spies. He was partially convinced his scientists had lied when they’d said they didn’t remember anything of their adult lives. Mel and Tripp certainly remember some of there training. 

Pulling up video on his tablets he located one of his troublemakers and set of to round them all up. He was almost tempted to remove his eye patch; maybe he needed both of his eyes on these kids.  
“Grandpa?” Phil blinked up at Fury, his cheeks flushed. Lifting him into his arms, he grimaced as chocolate smeared down his clothing. Thank god he wore black. Carrying him into the main bedroom, Phil was quickly placed in the bath. Adding bubble bath he manipulated the setting to bring up the video feed so he could watch the others. They seemed happy enough playing a video game for now so he had time to bath Phil. Muttering under his breath as he managed to accidently turn on the Jacuzzi setting, much to Phil’s delight, he eventually got the dial tone he was after.

“Sir? Kind of busy.”  
“Work and talk Romanoff. I know you can multitask.”  
“Yes sir. What can I do for you?”  
Ignoring the noises in the background and the small bangs Fury waited until the line was clear again.  
“Coms Natasha? What made you think… No Phil. That was a good idea? NO Phil. Shield technology should be in the hands, don’t eat the bunny Phil, of children?”  
“Everything ok there sir?” He could practically hear the smirk in her voice. “It’s not Shield’s. Stark made them.”  
“I should have known. No more technology for them understood?”  
“Yes sir. By the way I love the apron. It’s a good look on you.” The dial tone prevented him answering. Frowning he glanced around, there was no apron here. Sure he’d worn one earlier when he’d made lunch but as Phil had covered him in chocolate there was no point protecting his clothing now. Stopping Phil eating the bunny again, he failed to notice the absence of children in the games room. If he’d paid attention he may have spotted the trail of sugar from the kitchen into the living room, but Phil decided to splash soap in his eyes. He could be forgiven for missing the splashes of coke that covered the table as Phil ran out the room naked having just been dried. But Fury released he walked back into the living room with a finally dressed Phil that he really should have noticed the lack of noise and the guilty silence that had fallen over the house. 

It was all he could do to stare as four kids ran around in a sugar rush, chatting ten to the dozen. Watching them bounce off walls he knew when he’d reached the end of his skills. Dialling a little used number he fought to stop pleading entering his voice.  
“I need your help.”  
*****************************************  
They entered swiftly, Ward in front, completely in black combat suit, two guns drawn, clearing the way. She followed behind, not quite as silently but more so than she could have done four months ago. She’d been nervous that she’d forgotten all the training but it was like riding a bicycle, once you knew it you never forget it. Keeping her gun steady she followed him through the maze of corridors, heading towards the server room. It was a simple office building that contained a number of legitimate companies, hence why they were entering at night by the roof. Her hacking skills had come in handy, switching off the alarm and gaining them entry. She hadn’t been entirely sure why she was needed on this mission apart from as someone to watch Ward’s back until she’d made it to the computer room. For a simple law firm they had a lot of security, virtual and in real life. Ward’s skills had meant they’d avoided meeting any of the goons roaming the hall but getting out wasn’t going to be as easy.  
“I’ll be as quick as I can.” She whispered setting down her equipment and accessing the computer. “I’m into the mainframe already.”  
“It’s fine. We shouldn’t be detected. Just grab all the information you can. We can sort through it somewhere else.”  
“I know. I just want to get done.”  
“Missing the kids?” The room was dark apart from the glow of the computer screen but she was still convinced she could make out a faint smile on his face.  
“How can you ask that? Of course.”  
“Me too.” He made it sound like a weakness.  
“I’m sure they’ll be fine with Fury.”  
She could feel his look rather than see it and had to concede his point. They could be a bit of a handful.   
“It takes two of us and we barely manage.”  
“Hey just look at it this way if they destroy the house Fury can’t complain as it’s his fault.” Catching the waving of his hand she dimmed the brightness of the screen and practically held her breath until boots trooped past.   
“Two?”  
“Three.” He assessed. “Well trained by the look of it. You’re safe.”  
“On it.”

Two minutes later and the data transfer was nearly complete.  
“Uh oh.”  
“Skye?”  
“I..I think I tripped an alarm. They’ve build in a failsafe and I tripped it.”  
“How long?”  
“A minute before the alarms go.”  
“Grab the hard drive.”  
Disconnecting the equipment she rushed to his side, taking his offered hand. As they rushed down the corridor, speed valued more than silence, she held out the hard drive.  
“Safe with you.” They still hadn’t got onto to resisting torture.  
“No you keep it.” He ordered, shooting an upcoming goon with an ICER. As they hit the end of the corridor all hell broke loose. Alarms blaring they fled down the corridor, both brandishing guns to prevent ambush attempts. Hitting the stairs she began to climb, pausing when she realised he wasn’t following.  
“Ward?”  
“Go. I’ll make sure you get away clean.”  
“Grant!”  
“Go! I’ll be right behind you.”   
Knowing it was pointless to argue she raced up the stairs, wincing at bullet impacts behind her. Reaching the roof finding the evac waiting she felt the tension leave her body. They could make it. Throwing herself into the helicopter she turned to wait for Ward. The roof door burst open, sending dust flying. As bullets flew through the air Skye automatically ducked, reacting as Ward did. Noticing the waiting helicopter and the approaching men he made a quick gesture to the pilot.   
“No. What are you doing?” She screeched but the pilot couldn’t hear her without headphones. Before her eyes Grant was buried under bodies, taking blows to his body. As they began to fly away she saw she could read his thoughts telling her everything would be all right. But it wouldn’t be. He was still stuck there.   
“GRANT!!!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah, my nice light story has turned a bit angsty I’m sorry. Let me know whom you think Fury has called and anything the kids should get up to with him.


	39. Chapter 39

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. There is a trigger warning for mentions of blood, violence and torture. If this affects you avoid the first part.

Time was a funny thing, he’d found. When you were enjoying something it just slipped away, no matter how hard you clung onto it. Yet when it was something you hated, time almost seemed to stand still. 

It was this that could send you mad. Sure the pain was terrible, but it wasn’t the worst thing that could happen, the madness was. Every specialist was trained to withstand torture, to loose yourself in memories to forget the pain your body was undergoing. No one taught you that it was the madness that could get you. You were trained to withstand torture for days, weeks but not knowing how long you’d been there for that was the killer. Sure in some cases knowing the passing of time could make things worse but it was one thing he liked to know. 

When he’d been grabbed he’d snuck a glimpse at his watch, noting the time. It was one way to keep his mind busy as the kicks rained upon his chest. The Kevlar vest provided some protection but enough force over time and your body will weaken. Instead of counting the ribs that were breaking, he focused on the pattern, using it to count the passing of the time.

Kick, pause, kick, pause. Six minute later he was dragged to his feet, a bag thrust over his head. Ten stumbling steps down being prodded in the back, turn, another ten steps down. A creaky door, nice security alert, thirty paces down a corridor, his boots echoing over the walls. By his calculations Skye should be safely back at base now, though he didn’t imagine anyone would be safe from her. He’d seen her expression as the helicopter left, she was strong, she would fight for him. He couldn’t tell her the plan; she would have wanted to stay. She’d become strong but she shouldn’t have to go through this. He’d protect her for as long as possible. 

He’d expected the stunning blow to the head, the dizziness a refreshing change to the pain. His clothing was removed, leaving him in just boxers, the cool air helping to sharpen his mind. He almost wished it hadn’t, for now the ‘fun’ began. 

Hanging from the roof by your arms, toes barely scrapping the floor, took its toll on the body, weakening it, which was the point. The stench of blood became cloying though the plinking noise it made as it hit floor was a good keeper of time. Three hours had passed since the evac on the roof, not that it meant anything right now. It was approximately 30 minutes since he’d been left alone, that did mean something. If they kept to usual interrogation techniques they’d be back soon. In the beginning constant torture was needed to break the subject, only later did the times become random and unpredictability became your friend.

As if his thought had brought them, the door swung open. This one was well maintained, no squeak to give away its movement. If you could surprise your prisoner it was all the more in your favour. They’d even managed to disguise the tell-tale blast of air from the door by occasionally letting off puffs of air from what he assumed was an air conditioning unit. Unfortunately for them they couldn’t disguise the stale stench of sweat that was emitted from his torturer.

A buzz of electricity crackled through the room as his body jerked in response. No matter how hard you tried to lock down your muscles electricity always overruled them. Concentrating his mind he found himself trying a new technique. Previously he’d always let his mind wander, floating away from the present, only focusing on his timepiece. Focusing on happy memories had never worked for him like others, probably because he didn’t have that many happy memories. Now it was different. As the next jolt of energy passed through his body he swore he could smell Skye’s body wash, calming him, even as she chased a giggling Phil around the room as he evaded his bath.   
“Daaaaaad.” Jemma whined. “Tripp’s being mean.”  
“Am not.” Tripp replied indignantly.  
“Are too.”  
“Am not!”  
“ARE TOO!”  
“AM NOT!”   
“CHILDREN!” Skye bellowed louder than either of them, looping an arm around a giggling Phil and hauling him to the bathroom.  
“Sorry mum.” They both sounded so contrite, yet Ward knew if he could see them, their faces would give away the lie. 

The plinking of his blood mixed with the music of the DVD as Leo and Mel watched Wall e for the tenth time. Grabbing a precariously balanced drink of the bedside table before it covered Skye’s clothes in blackcurrant, he perched on the bed as Leo snuggled closer. What could be better than watching a kid’s movie? 

Smiling to himself he focused on that memory, it could sustain him through whatever torture they threw at him. His family would sustain him and he would go home to them. He’d made a promise that he’d intended to keep. Grant Ward was a survivor. With his family’s support he would survive this.   
************************************************

If he believed in them, he would’ve called her an angel. But he didn’t and he would never say such a thing out loud.   
“What took you so long?” He growled, glaring at her from the top of the stairs.  
“Hey. I’m doing you a favour Mr Grumpy Pants. Besides I brought Pizza.”  
“Pizza?”   
Out of nowhere the elder two of the troublesome lot appeared.  
“It’s Director Fury or Fury Miss Lewis. Giving them junk food isn’t a good idea. Trust me.”  
Picking up one the kids by the scruff of the neck he headed downstairs.  
“Darcy please. Anyway I have a plan.” Her grin was slightly mischievous as she headed into the kitchen.  
“Oh God!” Fury complained, more to himself than anyone listening. Setting down the wiggling child he followed after her like a sheep, determined to find out more of this plan of hers. Things had a habit of getting out of hand with Miss Lewis.  
“FOOD!” She bellowed, practically deafening him in one ear.  
Within seconds all of the kids were around the table helping themselves to pizza.  
“Who are you?” Jemma inquired, as she gobbled down her slice.  
“I’m Darcy. I’m here to help look after you.”  
“I thought that was Grandpa’s job?” It was one of the first times Fury had seen a confused look on Leo’s face, normally he figured everything out eventually. Clearly taking Fury’s glare as a warning not to mention Leo’s name for him, Darcy smiled gently at him.  
“Well I was in the area and Jane and Thor told me all about you, so I thought I’d drop in.”  
“You know auntie Jane and Uncle Thor?” Mel paused in retrieving what he counted was her fourth slice of pizza.   
“Yup!”  
“So that means you’re our auntie Darcy?”  
“I guess so.”  
“Just go with it Miss Lewis.” Fury muttered.  
“I guess that’s how you became Grandpa.” There was nothing much he could say to that.   
“Za.” Phil bounced waving his hands and sending tomato sauce flying across the room.  
“I think he’s trying to say pizza.” Leo offered around his mouthful. 

As the kids continued to devour the pizza, Fury took the opportunity to find out more of the plan.  
“The plan?”  
“We’re going to tire them out. There’s a park nearby. I checked. We let them run themselves ragged there and then they’ll sleep all night.” She said it as if it was so easy. “Don’t worry you play with Phil and I’ll run with the kids.”  
Oh yeah this was definitely going to go wrong. 

 

Though it was a sunny day, the park was relatively quiet, which suited Darcy’s needs perfectly. Having shooed Fury off with Phil to the swings she was left with the older group.   
“Ever played tag?” There were nods all around. “Well do you want to play a mix of tag and hide and seek? You hide and I’ll try and find you. If you get found and tagged then your it.”  
“Sure.” Darcy recognised that grin, Tripp may become a good agent but at the moment he was just a teenager who couldn’t control his expression.  
“I’ll count to thirty. One. Two.” The pounding of feed faded away as they went to hide. Reopening her eyes she had a quick scan of the area. She knew the kids were up to something; it was fairly obvious, as was the fact that they had Fury wrapped around their little fingers. She’d already picked her target. Now it was just a case of finding her. It wouldn’t be too difficult; she’d slipped a tracker inside her top for this reason. Plus if anything happened to any of the kids they’d be able to find them again. 

Laughing as she caught sight of Fury, she snapped a quick picture. Payback was still needed for Shield removing all their equipment in New Mexico. Fury swinging with a toddler beside him would do just fine. Pulling up the tracking app she had downloaded since the incident with Eric, she did a couple of faints before heading to corner her prey.   
“Why didn’t you just tag me?” Mel wondered sullenly.   
“I want to ask you something before I tagged you. What are you doing to your grandpa?”  
“Nothing.” Darcy tried a tact she’d seen Fury use. “Oh alright. We’re distract him so we can get sweets.”  
“And?”  
“That’s it.”  
Darcy just looked at her. Maybe being a responsible adult wasn’t that hard.  
“OK. We were planning on playing a trick on him.”  
“That might not be the wisest. He would probably see straight through it like your dad would.”  
“We were going to set it up and then make sure no one was near him.”  
“I tell you what, no more stealing sweets and I’ll help you get your grandpa. Deal?” Who needed to be a responsible adult? This was way more fun!  
“Deal.”  
“Now tag. You’re it.”  
**************************************** 

Skye fought them but without thought. All she wanted to do was retrieve Grant but they wouldn’t let her. She barely notices the slowing of the blades, the dipping of the helicopter. Arms gently encircled her and lifted her. Images fluttered through her mind but none registered. All she kept seeing was Grant being pinned down. God knows what would happen to him.

She vaguely registered being placed on a bed, someone fussing around her. Almost mechanically she handed over the data she retrieved. Someone could work on that.   
‘Come on Skye. You need to stay strong.’ She could practically hear Grant lecturing her. This wasn’t going to help him, but it felt like she was in a fog.

Slowly she became more aware of her surroundings. A video screen was in front of her, along with a man she recognised from the helicopter.  
“Ma’am we retrieved the data and Agent Skye. Agent Ward stayed behind and was captured.”  
“Thank you Agent Clifford. Skye can you hear me?”  
“They took him. They grabbed him. Maria they were attacking him.”  
“Skye listen to me. Ward is strong. He’s a survivor. We’ll formulate a plan then go rescue him. Some agents will come and talk to you. They’re friends and can help.”  
“We have to get him back.”  
“We will Skye.”

Food and drink were supplied, not a patch on Grant’s cooking but she never expected it to be. It was supposed to be a simple mission. Break in, retrieve the data and sneak back out again. How had it gone so wrong?  
“Agent Skye?”  
Breaking her train of thoughts was a tall blonde woman, casually dressed who’d spoken and a tall dark haired man with stubble, carrying a cowboy hat.  
“I’m Bobbi Morse or Mockingbird if you want my codename. This is Lance Hunter. He’s part of STRIKE.”  
“STRIKE?”  
“The British version of Shield love.”   
“We’ve been sent by Maria. She’d asked us to help rescue the missing agent. We’re to create a plan while she contacts the avengers. If they’re free they’ll help us, if not we’ll go in alone.” Bobbi continued.  
Nodding Skye relaxed her stance slightly, muscles aching from being tensed for so long.   
“What do you need from me?”  
“Can you tell us what you remember of the building? The better an idea we have of the layout before we go in, the easier it will be to find the agent.”  
“His name is Grant Ward. And yes anything that I can do to help.”  
‘Hang on Grant.’ Skye thought, almost willing him to hear. ‘We’re coming to get you.


	40. Chapter 40

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry this took so long. I was poorly then real life hit me like a train. Good new is I’ve now done everything for my masters so I have a lot more time on my hands now.

Everything was quiet, not even a mouse stirred. Yet he was certain something was wrong. Sighing he strode into the living room, carrying a small bundle of blankets. Giving up the bed for Miss Lewis was the gentlemanly thing to do but it did nothing for his back. Too many years of going on Ops had left him with a permanent ache that only a bed would relax. Stepping on a toy of some kind and hoping around he reflected on how much easier it was to run an organisation than look after kids. No wonder he never married, looking after his agents was enough trouble. Certain groups were like corralling five year olds or so he thought. These kids were worse. How they’d grow up into a team of agents he would never know.

Dropping onto the sofa he nearly flew into the air again as a pitiful moan filled the air. Switching on a torch he found the puppy gazing up at him with such accusing eyes.  
“You puppy move.”  
“Her name’s Nala and you’re sleeping on her bed.” Miss Lewis’ voice from the door stopped his staring competition. Maybe he was losing his touch.   
“I don’t care what her name is. She can’t sleep there.”  
“Well you won’t get her to move. The kids told me she always sleeps on the couch, Skye won’t let her sleep in the bedroom.”  
“Well she isn’t sleeping there tonight.”  
“Whatever you say Pirate. I just hope you don’t mind company.”   
If he didn’t need her so much he would of made more of an issue of her knowing grin. Sighing he lifted the puppy before lying down, muttering to himself. Once certain she’d gone he gently placed the puppy on his chest, where she snuggled down happily.   
“Maybe it is time to retire?” He mussed. “Can’t cope with a group of five children.”

 

“Well?” The quiet whisper met Darcy as she reached the top of the stairs. Stood to one side of the stairs in the dark she could make out two small figures.  
“Give him five minutes. He’ll be out like a light. Now remember watch the fifth stair it creaks.”  
“We know.” Tripp’s voice acknowledged.   
Sinking down slowly so she didn’t sit on him or Mel she found a seat on the stairs, smiling to herself when she felt Mel curl up beside her. Once enough time had passed that she was certain Fury would be asleep she crept to her feet.   
“OK Tripp, be careful around the floor, some of your toys are there. Mel you’re the quietist so you get to sort your grandpa. Now let’s do this so we can all get some sleep. I think we’ll be woken early in the morning.”

As they snuck downstairs she was struck by how little noise they made. Was it that they remember some of their training? Or had they just been that good from childhood? Anyway it was the perfect skill to play a prank on an unsuspecting Pirate. Grabbing the supplies she’d stashed she supplied cans of silly string and paint to the children. As Mel set about decorating Fury with the paint and silly string, Tripp began rigging the camera for the morning. If they actually managed to pull this off they needed pictures for later. At Tripp’s nod, a small pocket of light from outside gleaming off his teeth, Darcy quietly stretched and attached the camera. Seeing Mel was nearly done they began laying the early warning system around the sofa consisting of cans and bells that anybody trying to cross the room wouldn’t fail to trigger. As the kids scampered upstairs Darcy found herself stifling giggles.   
“Shush” Mel cautioned.  
“I know. Now to bed both of you.”  
Watching the doors close she headed for her computer, Maria needed to know about this and Tony would definitely want in. He would be so proud.  
***********************************  
Skye’s pacing wasn’t speeding up her computer but it made her feel better.  
“You’re going to wear out the floor.” A quiet voice reached her. Spinning, she could help the flare of shame as she thought of how Grant would scold her for not being aware of her surroundings. “Here I brought you a drink.”  
“Thanks.” Her voice sounded scratchy to her own ears and she wondered how long she’d been deliberately keeping quiet. It felt as if she spoke then her screams would escape her.   
“We’ll get him back Skye.” Bobbi reassured as she opened her own drink. “He’s one of the best.”  
“You worked with him?” Skye wondered. Grant had always kept his past so quiet.  
“No. But his reputation precedes him. He’s a legend. Everyone knows he’s the best since Romanoff.”  
“He’s good, couldn’t quiet beat my scores but I did have a few advantages on him.” A voice deadpanned.  
“Nat!” Skye ran to her before even thinking about it, throwing her arms around the assassin.  
“Hey. Maria thought you could do with some extra help. Plus I have a bone to pick with these guys.”  
“You know them?” Bobbi inquired as she joined the pair.  
“No but they kidnapped someone close to my nieces and nephews.”  
“Didn’t know you had nieces and nephews.”   
“They’re adopted.” Nat grinned as she gently separated Skye from her.  
“See I’m not the only one who adopts people.”   
As one Nat and Bobbi rolled their eyes at one of the duo that entered the room.  
“At least Nat knows who’s appropriate to adopt unlike some people.” Bobbi snarked.  
“I’m hurt.” Clint mocked.  
“They know each other?” Skye wondered as the trio continued their conversation ignoring everyone else.  
“Bobbi knew Clint when he brought Nat into Shield.” Lance supplied, sipping Bobbi’s drink. “Before my time but Bobbi likes to complain about him a lot. Never get on her bad side, she holds a grudge.”  
“I heard that!”  
“Sorry love. It’s the truth.”

“Anyway, we can catch up later.” Nat ordered. “Skye have you found us a way in?”  
“The satellite has nearly finished rendering a complete blueprint but the only access point apart from the front door appears to be the roof but...”   
“They’ll be expecting people from the roof.” Nat finished. Pausing for a second she glanced at Clint, with them seeming to hold a conversation with their eyes.  
“So I guess we get to find out how your new arrows work, Clint.”   
**********************************

Nose twitching Fury sleepily battered whatever was hitting his face. It wasn’t anything dangerous or he’d have woken earlier. Probably the dogs tail. Stretching tiredly he examined his watch, wondering if he had time to work before the terrors woke. Frowning at his arm in confusion it took a second for him to register what he was seeing.


	41. Chapter 41

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if there are mistakes I wrote this while on a train on my way to a job interview.

This is insane! She had time to think before she was flying through the air. When they'd come up with this plan she really hadn't thought through the consequences. She'd been so focused on retrieving Grant that she had thought through all the aspects of the plan. It wasn't that she didn't trust Hawkeye, she knew he'd used these specialist arrows before, it was just that dangling off a building by a thin wire that was anchored by an arrow wasn't exactly on her bucket list. If it wasn't their only route in she would've refused. But as it was she was now dangling beside a master assassin while he worked out how to get through the toughened glass window.  
"Don't!" She squeaked as he went to break the window. "There's a motion sensor. Smashing the glass will set it off."   
"Nice spot. I knew Nat should've come up first. She could've gotten in far faster than I can."  
"Nice to be appreciated!" Nat's smug comment made her jump slightly. She was even quieter than Grant was. Glancing down at the ground she spotted the red head lounging against the building as if she didn't have a care in the world. It must be a specialist thing. She'd seen Grant do the exact same thing. She wished she had that confidence. It was all she could do to keep her voice and hands steady, though that may because the stakes were higher on this one. Much higher.  
"How're we going to get through the window? Skye can you hack the sensor?" Clint muttered.   
Shaking her head, which sent her spinning on the wire she replied.  
"Not till we're inside."  
"Damn!"  
"Do you still have that gift I gave you?" Nat enquired.  
"Oh god!" Lance's groan was clearly audible through the coms.  
"Why is your mind always in the gutter Hunter?"  
"Because we both know you!" Bobbi exclaimed.  
"Guys!" Skye complained. She understood the need for banter, she regularly took part when on missions but this time it was too much. While they're messing about who knew what has happening to Grant.   
"Anyway. One of the packages has an acid arrow tip. It should cut through the glass and avoid setting off the sensor."   
"What do you need acid arrow tips for?" Bobbi wondered as Clint began switch through the quiver options.  
"Cutting through glass clearly." Hunter sasses back.   
"I like to be prepared." Nat commented unruffled.  
"Got it." Clint pulled the arrow free, drawing it along the window, smoke rising in its wake.  
"So why give it to Clint?" Bobbi wondered, continuing their conversation.   
"Why have a dog and bark yourself?"  
"Hey!" Clint objected as the glass came away. Stealthy he slipped though the window. Skye followed having much more difficultly. 

"When this is over I'm taking up Pilates." She grumbled as she began overriding the security system.  
"Well if it's flexibility your after there are more fun ways to achieve it." Lance smirked.  
"Hunter!"  
"I'm not on about me Bobbi. From what I've heard her SO can be fairly flexible when needed. I'm sure he can improve her flexibility in a way that is a lot more fun."   
Ignoring the innuendo in his voice she continued hacking the system. By the time the others had joined her and Clint the system was hers.  
"Right I go first. Skye you're next then Clint. Bobbi you protect our exit, Hunter keep them away from the van. We're on com silence unless of an emergency. Copy?"   
After everyone agreed they slowly made their way into a corridor. They weren't entirely sure where Grant was being held so they were going to look for signs of a strengthened room while Skye's algorithm searched the cameras. One way or another they would find him. Methodically they check the first corridor before heading up stairs. The lack of guards concerned Skye but neither Clint nor Nat seemed too worried. Climbing up a level they reached a passcode protected door which took Skye a matter of seconds to hack.   
"Looks promising." Clint encouraged.   
Nat motioned them to stay as they spotted two armed guards outside a heavy steel door.  
"Very promising." Clint muttered as Skye check her tablet from confirmation. Passing it to Nat she nodded at Clint. Pushing down her elation she concentrated on Nat as she used hand signals to explain what would happen next. Before they could move the guarded door opened emitting a man. As he strode down the corridor Skye made out rust coloured stains on his arms and hands, outrage flaring.   
"Steady." Nat cautioned quietly. As the guards settled back into their positions beside the door, Skye watched as Nat confidently strutted down the corridor. Reaching the men she jumped grabbing the first around the neck with her thighs. Using her momentum she flung the man into the path of the other guard. A swift rabbit punch took him out before a back kick sent the other crumpling to the ground. Satisfied they wouldn't be bothering them she beckoned to the watching pair. Skye followed Clint slightly awed. She knew how good Nat was, everyone did. But it was one thing to hear about it, another to see it first hand. Catching a glimpse of Skye's face Nat grinned slightly.  
"It's not that impressive really. Looks better than it actually is."  
"Yeah. No. It is impressive." Skye muttered as she bend to examine the lock on the door. Surprisingly it was just a simple lock and key, not something she could hack. Moving her gently aside Clint made short work of the door. 

As the door swung open she couldn't help the small-agonised gasp escaping her. Hung in the room was Grant. Blood trickled from cuts, a small pool situated at his feet. Hearing the noise he slowly raised his head as if it was made of lead.  
"Nice trick. Still not going to work." He grimaced before spitting out a small amount of blood.  
"Grant? It's me. Skye." She moved forward automatically before being stopped by a gentle hand on her arm. Turn she looked inquiringly at Clint.  
"Be Careful. He's extremely dangerous normally, even more so now he's hurt. He thinks it's a trick. He might hurt you. That would tear him apart once he recovers." Nodding at him she shuck his hand off, moving forward till she stood just out of hands reach of Grant. Behind her Nat covered the door while Clint kept an eye on them all.  
"Grant it really is me. We came to rescue you."  
"That's cute. I'm not sure how you made them sound like Skye but it's very impressive."  
"Damn it Robot. It really is me." She stamped her foot. Realising he was never going to believe her she stepped closer ignoring Clint's warning and placed her hands on either side of his face. Stretching up on tiptoes and ignore the blood she gentle pressed a kiss on his lips. Pulling back she watched as he blinked at her in disbelief.  
"Skye?"  
"Yup. Now come on Robot. Let's get out of here so I can kick your ass for sacrificing yourself to save me."  
"You're really here?"  
"Yup. Now let's get you down."  
Beckoning Clint forward between the two of them they managed to get Grant down safely to the floor. She couldn't help but wince as he stood up, the movement cracking a scab and sending fresh blood flowing down his body. Nat gave him a quick assessment before informing Bobbi and Lance they had the package and were heading back. Ushering Grant to stand with Skye, Nat quickly headed back down the corridor with the rest of the group following. They were just down the corridor from the room they had used to enter the building when all hell broke lose. 

As Nat and Clint engaged the guards who'd wandered out of another room, Grant had dragged Skye down protecting her with his body. As bullets flew over their heads Bobbi joined the fray as the guards radioed for reinforcements. Grabbing Grant's hand Skye pulled them both to their feet and headed to their exit. Nat and Clint had been very clear what to do if they engaged with guards. Reaching e window she quickly located the wire. Clipping it onto her harness situated in her tacsuit she quickly observed Grant. No one had mentioned how they were going to get him out without a harness. Understanding the problem he quickly picked her up and wrapped her around his body, ignoring her protests that he was too injured. Clambouring out of the window he lowered them down with a rush of air. Reaching the bottom his legs finally gave out leaving him slumped on the ground. Seeing Skye struggling to move Grant, Hunter quickly came to her aid and between them they moved him into the van. As Skye began strapping him to various monitors Bobbi landed gracefully on the sidewalk. Jumping into the front seat she was quickly followed by Nat and Clint who were both providing cover fire for each other. As soon as they were both in the van Bobbi moved off with a screech of tires.   
"Maria we've got him. Prepare medical." Nat informed as she began inspecting Grant's wounds. Taking the seat beside him Skye slumped in relief. As she watched him take shallow breaths she gently grasped his hand so he would know she was still there. Seeing the motion Nat gently squeezed her shoulder.  
"He'll be fine." She reassured before continuing with her assessment of his wounds.

*******************************************  
"Prepare medical staff to the garage. One male. Lacerations and torture wounds."  
"Yes ma'am!" Maria watched as staff ran around in preparation for the team's arrival. One the screen in front of her she watched as they drove towards them, only quitting once she saw van had arrived back at the headquarters. Grabbing a tablet she began making her way towards medical to debrief the team and inspect the condition of ward.  
"Stark what are you doing here?" She was brought abruptly to a stop having found him floating in the hallway much to the delight of his fans in the building.  
"I was contacted by some of your scientists. Apparently they'd found something that required my expertise."  
"Right so you're floating in my hallway why?"  
"I need Bruce's help. Plus I heard about agent Ward so want to visit him for myself." He was unusually sombre."  
"He's fine Tony. Natasha has already examined him."  
"Good. Have you seen the video from the intern? You're boss really can't control children."  
"Darcy? What was she doing?"  
"Helping the children play tricks apparently. They got him good."  
"Of course they did." She sighed. She was never going to hear the end of this. Hopefully it all ended up on tape.  
"Hang on why did the scientists need your help? They're the best in the world." She wondered.  
"Because of my father's research into transforming people into super soldiers."  
"Wait?"  
"They think they've found how your agents were turned into children." He nodded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back to the children in the next chapter

**Author's Note:**

> So here you go. If anybody has anything that the kids or Skye and Ward should do let me know.


End file.
